The Fall
by Wonderland in Chains
Summary: When a dog shows up on the Titan's door step, she's certainly more than first meets the eye. She may just be the key to saving the universe, and a certain cloaked Titan. Even she is unsure how she ended up where she did, but everyone will be finding out soon enough. When her part is complete, will she want to go home, or stay where fate has taken her? FEMSLASH
1. The Dog

**I've decided that this story needs a little TLC before continuing, so I'll be editing/rewriting these chapters. It shouldn't take too long, but I think everyone, including myself, will be happier with the results. This means longer, more detailed chapters, as well as me throwing in more plot and fixing plot holes and characterization. I'll be leaving up posted chapters and just replace them as I go. So! Enjoy the rewritten chapter one!**

The medium sized black with a white chested mutt, what looked to be a cross between a pit bull and border collie, roamed the streets of Jump City, tired and hungry, her head and fluffy tail low.

She had been wondering for nine days, and had just stumbled into the bay by chance.

She didn't know what was going on.

When she woke up for the first time Nine days ago in an alley, she was ashamed to admit that she had panicked. Ran right out into traffic, disoriented, and had been clipped by a car. She walked with a noticeable limp, her hind left leg. She was hungry, and overly thirsty. She had been living off what empathetic children and teens threw at her, which wasn't much.

A young boy, maybe eight, is walking down the sidewalk with his mother, a soft serve icecreame cone in hand.

"Mommy, look at the dog!"

"Yes, I see it," she glances up from her phone over the rim of her glasses.

She's laying next to a worn out bench. The boy stops infront of her, bending down and using his free hand to stroke over her ears. "Be careful," His mother calls. The dog allows the boy to pet her.

"Can we keep it?"

"No, your dad is allergic and I don't like the hair. Now come on, we're going to be late."

"Aaaaawwwww!" the boy croons. The dog lowers her ears as the two continue on their way. She sighs. This isn't working out for her one bit.

She pushes herself up, continuing to fallow the smell of seaweed through the dirty smell of the city. She'd never noticed how dirty it smelt in cities before. Smog, burnt rubber, oil. It isn't very pleasant.

The seaweed and salty smell had been her saving grace over the last three days as she tries to find the soarce.

This city looks like San Francisco.

The artisticly grafitied sides of buildings and numerous street venders, performers, and artisits almost cemented it in her head. She'd only ever been there a handfull of times, but something seemed different here. It didn't give the same vibe as San Francisco, and there are a lot less tall buildings. She'd also seen the slums, and they looked nothing like San Francisco's. San Francisco also holds more color, as simple as it sounds.

She waits for the walk light before crossing the street with a homely looking man and woman. The woman snickers at her behavior. The dog simply rolls her eyes.

Another block and there it is.

The ocean.

She trots as quickly as she can with her injured leg down the sloped street, darting accross the asfault before hopping onto the seaside path.

She inhales the salty yet clean smelling breeze. She looks down the bay, spotting piers, some docked with boats, others loaded with shops and restaurants.

She gazes out at loaded beaches, her eyes running the length of the far shore over sparkling water, hardly visible with how far away it is.

Boats and windgliders litter the dazzling scenery.

Suddenly she freezes.

Her heart rate speeds up as she gazes out at the huge, metalic, sparkling T that is residing out on a small island.

She can't believe what she's seeing.

She suddenly felt like vomiting. Because THIS, is some fiction type shit right here. She isn't even in her own fucking dimension anymore.

Her dimension is the boring one where the only heroes are law enforcement and the military. Everyone is ordinary, and the only excitement people got out of life is movies, anime, comic books and cartoons. DC and Marvel dominate American comics, and absolutely everything that had to do with superheroes is just an exciting idea.

She's thrown through a loop, now half expecting the Decepticons to come swooping in to try to take over the city.

She sits on her haunches, staring out at the bay, which would be shrouded in darkness soon.

What could she do about this?

Well, realistically, nothing but wake up.

She lowers her ears with a growl.

The last nine days had drug on with no intereuption.

So was this even a dream?

There certainly wasn't a hazziness around her vision that would suggest this being a dream.

With a tilt of her head, she soon makes up her mind.

Tentatively, she makes her way down the slightly steep succulent covered cliff, and, sending a prayer Heaven's way, jumps headlong into the salty, possibly shark infested, water.

She's absolutely terrified of deep water, not because there is a possibility of drowning, oh no, she's afraid of it due to the possibility of something swallowing her whole, a ridiculous fear, but there all the same. At this point though, she believes she truthfully has nothing to lose.

She hopes she doesn't get run over by a boat.

She paddles like her life depends on it, and she quickly learns how far out Titans Tower really is from the mainland. It isn't like she could stow away on a boat, for crying out loud though. She didn't have a choice but to swim.

She panics slightly as the current makes her drift, and she fights it as hard as she can to stay on course to the island, and to even just keep her head above the swells.

The salty water stings her nose and eyes, filling her ears.

The genetics of the pit bull within her new body seems to give her the strength, for which she is thankful. The border collie the stamina. If she was still in her original body, she would have surly drown by now.

She can't help but think how strange it is that she's even thinking that way.

Her mind becomes blank, focusing on just staying afloat, and breathing. After an hour, her paddles become more labored, her breathing ragged. There was no turning back now. And night had fallen. This was probably not the best course of action she'd ever taken. Damn her horrible judgment.

Another hour and a half passes of choppily treading the water, and the crescent moon is high in the sky. The only way she's even able to stay on track through the darkness is the light shining from the tower that she focuses on through her burning and bleary eyes.

She finally makes it to shore, pulling herself onto land with relieved huffs, her body aching. She can't even find the energy to shake herself out and get the salty water from her erect ears.

She forces herself to slowly walk up toward the tower, and into the little compartment box thing that contained the front door of the tower. She couldn't believe they had a legit front door, cause it honestly didn't seem plausible. She thought this way when she had watched the cartoon, but disregarded it. She did the same now.

Not as if its overly important.

She collapsed into a corner, splaying herself out on her right side, her left hip still aching from being hit.

Water is running in streams from her short fur, her tongue lolling out, she lays still. She didn't even have a plan for alerting the Titans to her presence.

She supposed she'd tackle that rickety bridge later though.

She snaps awake. The motor of a boat passing by the island hit her aching ears.

She gives her head a shake, glancing around the afternoon light.

She'd slept that long?

Now what?

With a huff, she pulls herself up with a shiver. Her fur is still damp, the breeze not aiding her chilled body.

She ambles around, turning her gaze skyward.

What could she possibly do?

She lowers her left ear, sitting back on her haunches, before tearing loose with a baying howl.

What a sight she must be, a black dog howling up at Titan's tower.

It couldn't have been twenty minutes when a door swishes open. The dog snaps her head down at the sound, her ears irrect, her eyes wide.

Was this really true?

Those...

Those really are the Titans!

"Dude, it's a dog. How is there a dog out here?" A slender green toned figure steps out into the sun's rays, kneeling down to gaze at her with eyes greener than his skin. The dog's heart is just about bursting through her chest.

"It looks like it swam out here, man." The largest figure crosses his arms, also bending down. "Think it's a trap?"

"C'mon dude, it's a dog. Since when do villains try to infiltrate our base with animals?" The first figure runs his fingers between her ears. "Now if it was a cat, that's a totally different story."

"I can not recall a time when such events have taken place," A third voice chimes, its owner's feet toutching down by her left side. The dog looks at the slender girl, drowning in a friendly gaze of lime green.

"Theres a first time for everything, Star," a colorful and caped figure stands further back. The dog twitches her ear at him, mixed feelings swimming in her chest.

"What is it, 'nyway?" She gives the green boy what she hopes is a pointed look as he leans over to catch a glimpse of her belly. "Tis a girl," he quips in a slightly british accent.

"No collar. Think she's a stray?" The metalic Titan raises an eyebrow.

"She's gotta be, she's skin and bone and smells horrible."

"She's friendly enough, though. I can scan for a microchip. If there's nothing the most we can do is put an ad up on Craigslist or Facebook and see if anyone claims her."

"And if no one claims her?"

"I guess we'll have to take her to the pound. We don't have the time to take care of her."

Them discussing her fate right in front of her bugged the poor dog more than she could describe. And the pound? No way in hell was she going there!

"But Richard! We can not take her to the prison of dogs and cats! That is unfair! We take care of Silkie just fine."

"Uh, Star. YOU take care of Silkie just fine."

"I would not mind taking care of another. It would certainly be no problem at all. Silkie is lonely enough to have a sister."

"Dogs are a lot different than an alien caterpillar, Kori."

"Rich? I honestly think if this isn't a trap, she'd be good for team moral. Cause honestly, dogs are always happy to see you when you get home. Hell, most dogs are happy to see you if you just walk into the room! Not to mention the chick magnet she'll be. You have to admit she's a cute one."

"Yes! Garfield's reasoning sounds glorious!"

A sigh. "Alright, we'll see. No promises. And I am not taking care of her. I think we should drop her off at the pound first thing in the morning, but I can already tell you two are going to fight me on it. I'll give it two weeks, and if she hasn't been claimed, or it doesn't work out, she's going to the pound."

Excited whoops.

"She needs a bath before she gets to stay in." Robin disappears.

"Y'all are crazy, but so am I. I used to have a chihuahua when I was little and I miss that little sucker. Go get her cleaned up and I'll go pick her up some food." The largest figure fallows the first.

"C'mon pretty girl, you're gonna be so pretty when we're done with ya!" The smaller figure kisses at her as he backpedals, obviously intending for her to fallow. The dog tilts her head at him slightly before pushing herself up. She fallows them into the tower, her heart attempting to fight its way through her mouth. She wrinkles her nose slightly at the dusty smell this hallway holds, her body quivering with the amount of awe and disbelief contained within.

"She is such an interesting dog! Perhaps we can use the time Richard has allotted us to convince him that she is a worthy pet?" Star says happily to Beast Boy. The dog watches them both curiously as she limps after them.

"Already been thinking of a plan," he smiles mischievously. He glances back at the dog slowly limping after them as they enter the elevator. "She's got a pretty bad limp, doesn't she? I wonder what happened."

"I hope she isn't injured too badly," Star gushes, putting her hands on her knees as she bends down to face the dog as she sits at the two's feet. The ebony dog gazes up at the pretty Tamaranian. The elevator door closes.

"Do you know if Raven can heal animals?" Beast boy asks, looking thoughtful.

"That I do not know, but there is a strong possibility."

"We should give her a flea bath, but the shampoo we have in the bathroom will work for now."

"Why should we give her the bath of fleas? She does not appear to be scratching." Star looks confused.

"Precautionary. And I know from experience those things suck, pun intended," Beast Boy shudders. The elevator door opens, and the three step out. "Doesn't Raven have some expensive hypoallergenic oatmeal shampoo or something in the bathroom at end of the hall that the rest of us never use?"

"If we don't use it, how are we supposed to know what friend Raven has in it?" Star jokes. Beast Boy laughs.

"I may or may not have used it once or twice when the other three were occupied. And ended up snooping." The dog rolls her eyes. Of course he did.

This seemed to be the level that all the bedrooms were on, and they walked past Robin's, Star's, and finally Raven's room before coming to the end of the hall where the bathroom was, not too far from Raven's room. The grey tones of the walls and carpet is easy on Apache's eyes after the brightness of the outside.

The dog drinks in the scents that waft from under the doors, filing them away for later use. It seemed to her like she would never get used to having such a sensitive nose.

Robin's room smelles clean and earthy, with a hint of what could only be described as inscents.

Star's room smells distinctly citrusy, with undertones of silk, autumn, vanilla, and... Saliva? Something certainly stunk, but she couldn't pinpoint what. The possibility of it being Silky dawned on her. It's a freakin alien worm after all.

Raven's room, now that was something completely different. It smelled like jasmine, earth, a sweet musty smell, sugar and something she could only describe as something similar to a... Pixie. That was the first word to come to mind to describe the smell, as silly as it is. It's a tangy and fluttery smell. She figured from all the fanfiction she'd read that Raven would have a sickening, unsettling, hackle-rising smell, that didn't seem to be the case at all.

The three walk cautiously into the bathroom Raven had obviously claimed, and Star flips the lights on.

The dog notices it happens to be a spacious bathroom. Granite countertops accent the navy walls perfectly, and the white tile shimmers pristinely. The dark stained oak cupboards match perfectly. The mirror, as most mirrors usually do, takes up the entire space above the counter, which contained the sink. Next to the light switch was a medicine cabinet that matched the cupboards, and the toilet sat on the other side of the cupboards, nearly hidden behind them. On the opposite wall of all of this is where the very large, black and white checkered tiled shower-bathtub combination resides. A black shower curtain hanga from a rod, ready to be pulled over to box the shower in.

It smells clean and of soap and jasmine.

All in all a very nice bathroom. The three of them could easily move around and not be crowded.

Beast Boy starts the shower up, plugging the bathtub. "Hopefully she likes baths and won't be too much trouble. Think we should call Raven and see if she'll heal her before or after we give her a bath?" Beast Boy eyes the black and white dog, not liking at all how bad she's limping.

"I believe friend Raven will be most upset that we used her showering quarters without her permission." Star looks the slightest bit worried, not a fan of being under any of her friends wrath.

"Ah, don't worry about it. She'll get over it. And who knows, maybe this little girl right here will end up her best friend. You know Rich won't make us get rid of her if that happens." Beast Boy smirks mischievously, rubbing his gloved hands over the dogs ears.

"That would be most wonderful! I have heard that pets can make one live longer, and can bring a person great joy." Star looks pleased.

"That they can. We need to think of a name for her. We can't just keep calling her 'dog' and 'her'." Beast Boy remarks. The two decide to lift the dog into the tub, and she goes in without complaints.

The dog can't help the feeling of wanting to snap at the two as they lather Raven's special shampoo, which turned out to be for dry hair and dandruff, and was indeed expensive as well as very pleasant smelling, into her fur. She does not like being touched one bit. Yet she ignores it, as this is her first bath in nine days and she relishes in the beautiful feeling of the warm water.

Beast Boy carefully washed her face before Star rinses her short fur out, completing her bath. The amount of dirt that pours off her with the water is disgusting to say the least, and she wishes they would wash her out one more time to make sure they got it all, but her wish is not answered. They drain the tub of the brown water and dry her off.

She can't help but be relieved that she no longer smells like salt water and sea weed. She feels so much better that she didn't know it was possible. She forgot just how much she loves baths.

Her fur damp, she hops out of the tub clumsily, sitting on the tile and staring up at the two Titans expectantly. "We should probably be calling Raven now, the longer we wait the more likely it will be that she will be upset."

"Kori, she's already going to be upset, but I'm way ahead of ya, this will work like a charm," He pulls the bathroom door open, and in a blood curdling tone, screams, "RAVEN GET IN HERE WE NEED YOU ITS AN EMERGENCY!"

... ... ... ... ...

Better? Next chapter to be updated shortly. Thank you for reading!


	2. Finding Her Place

**Enjoy the rewritten chapter 2!**

The dog, startled by the scream, bolts to the other side of the toilet, and hunkers down there. Her ears perk as a quick tap tap tap comes racing down the hallway, and the bathroom door is flung open to reveal a slightly short girl with dark, bordering on black, violet hair, her cloak billowing out behind her.

Thats...

Raven?

Raven!

The dog's tail thumps quietly against the tile, her heart racing a mile a minute. She can feel a type of doggy smile pull at her lips, her piercing heterochromia eyes wide amd excited.

"What's wrong?" She asks, her amethyst eyes wide. Her demeanor instantly changes at Beast Boy's awkward smile and wave. Her narrowing eyes dart between Starfire, Beast Boy, and finally to the dog behind the two, hidden behind the toilet, the only sign of her being her muzzle and ears poked out to inspect the scene with heterochromia eyes, one brown, the other bright blue along with the thick smell of wet dog hanging in the air.

"We kinda wanted to know if you could maybe possibly heal animals?" Beast Boy asks, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"You brought a dog into my bathroom?! And what the hell is a dog even doing here anyway?!" Raven is stiff, angry, her voice only raised the slightest bit, but her level of anger was plain to see, even if she was keeping most of it boxed in. It dampens the dogs excitement, but only slightly. She lowers her ears, fighting the urge to duck farther behind the toilet as she gazes up at the gorgeous girl.

"We heard howling and when we went to investigate, found her. Richard required her to have a bath before she could stay inside." Star explains, her eyes alight and posture hopeful.

"And that gave you permission to use my bathroom when there are three others that could be used instead?! Garfield! Your bathroom is already trashed, why didn't you use yours?" Raven turns on him, fire in her eyes. Beast Boy cowers.

"Well, you see, I don't have shampoo that would be all that safe to use on her..."

"So you used mine?!" Raven is positively seething, anyone could swear she was about to breathe fire.

"Yeah... I couldn't use mine on her. Well, technically I could have but it's not good to use it on animals."

"You're basically a damn animal, Gar! What are you even talking about?"

"Yeah, well! I'm still technically a person! Look, can you heal the dog or not? Even if you're mad at me for my decision, why should she have to suffer if you can heal her when she didn't do anything?" Beast Boy gets defensive. The hidden dog had to admit that was pretty deep, especially for what she pictures him to be.

"I agree, it is not fair for something living to suffer if they are innocent." Star adds, glancing back at the dog.

Raven looks irritated, obviously feeling as if her hands were tied on the matter, no matter how irritated she may be. "Fine! I'll try my best. Bring her out here, I'm not going in there with that smell. You had better make sure its cleaned up!" She turns and walks away from the door. The duo sigh, deflating.

"Well, that was most pleasant." Star quips, running her hand through her hair.

"Take her to Raven, I'll clean everything up so she won't bury us alive." Beast Boy rolls his eyes and grabs a violet towel from a drawer to begin drying the floor.

"Come here, pretty little dog," Star begins, calling to the startled dog in the corner. "Raven will heal you and make you feel much better! She's not as scary as she looks."

"Star, you have to whistle at them and say 'come' to get them to come to you." Beast Boy laughs as he mops up the drenched floor.

"Raven may have startled her." Star says, concern etched in her features.

"I doubt it." Beast Boy whistles at the dog, calling her to come, and she slowly crawls out from her hiding place, elation and uncertainty clouding her mind.

She hobbles toward Star, her mind working at a million miles a minute. She's baffled by how gorgeous the dark Titan is, as well as her inner fire. Fear floods her lungs momentarily before again dissapearing. She refuses to be afraid of her favorite Titan. The fear is simply irrational to her anyway. It wasn't her the fiery girl was mad at, after all.

This was more like a dream come true than anything else. The ebony dog simply can't fully comprehend this. Was this a trick of her mind? A lucid dream? God joking with her? She isn't fully sure.

She cautiously glances between the two Titans, one very displeased as he mops up the filthy floor, the other holding a neutral expression as she moves to open the door. The dog isn't sure if they're going to evaporate any moment or not.

When the door shuts bl0eind the two girls, excitement, uncertainty, adrenaline, and hopefulness jolt throug the dog at the speed of a bullet when she spots Raven a little ways down the hall leaning against the wall, her hood down, allowing all of her beauty to be showcased. The dog gazes up at the girl in absolute awe.

A whistling whine makes its was past her muzzle as her tail whips back and forth at the speed of light. Picking her injured leg up, she darts at Raven in a hobbling three legged run, jumping up to balance on her hind legs, pawing at the air directly infront of Raven.

The girl shields herself with her arms as if the dog were going to jump on her.

"No, down!" She commands of the dog. Reigning in her excitement, the dog instantly drops down into a sit, wide excited heterochromia eyes trained on the grey skinned girl as her tail brushes over the carpet like a feather duster.

Star's laughter rings out like a symphony of bells. "She likes you!"

"What's wrong with it?" Raven quirks an eyebrow at the overly happy canine, crossing her arms across her chest.

"She, Raven. I do not see a problem with her behavior, but she does appear to have an injured leg," Star smiles at Raven, interlocking her fingers infront of her chest.

Raven simply knits her eyebrows together slightly as she kneels down, hands folded in her lap. "I can't promise anything, but I'll try. I've never healed animals before."

"That's all we could ever ask of you. We appreciate your attempts, amd I'm sure she does too," Star kneels down a few feet away from the two, her hands on her knees. The dog twitches her ear. Damn right she appreciates Raven! Maybe a little more than she should, but still.

Raven looks slightly unsure, before lifting her hand to hover it infront of the charcoal dog's face.

The dog honestly couldn't care less if someone allowed her to sniff their hand or not, but she does so anyway to show acceptance, or whatever the hell it was that was the point of this. She smells of jasmine, and theres that weird pixie smell again. Any more of this and she swears she'll be meeting Peter Pan and Tinkerbell.

It occurs to her that maybe Raven doesn't have much experience with dogs, or animals in general. Unless Azarath had animals, but that's completely up in the air.

She pushes her face under Raven's hand after giving it a gentle lick. Startled, Raven rips her hand away. Star laughs, releasing gorgeous peels of laughter. With a sigh, Raven reaches for the dogs injured back leg with her left hand. The ebony dog watches curioualy.

When contact is made with the knee joint, Raven quietly recites her mantra. Her eyes flash white, and black energy envelops the dogs leg. The dog yelps, but before she can jump away, Raven wraps her right arm around the dog's neck, keeping her in place.

The dog becomes stunned, all previous eltation forgotten. Her body is stiff and her eyes wide. She could... See something. Hear screams... Begging, crying, laughter...

She could SEE something but she couldn't tell exactly what.

The crack of something registers, but she's too busy trying to figure out what it is she's seeing.

When Raven releases her, everything disappears. Her leg is throbbing, but she dares to put all of her weight on it. She finds the throbbing is the worst of it.

"Good... Um, dog." Raven pats the top of her head, causing elation to shoot through her like a shot of adrenaline.

"What a good girl! You did so well!" Star hugs the dog, running her fingers through the short yet soft and damp fur. The dog's tail whips back and forth at a mile a minute, the vision all but forgotten.

"Her knee was dislocated and she had two hairline fractures and a fracture. She's fine now." Raven stands, turning to head back to her room. "I swear, if any of you call me like that again outside of a real emergency there will be hell to pay."

"Understood." Star beams at Raven, which she misses due to her entering her room. The dog's tail droops at her departure, the doggy smile falling from her muzzle.

"BB, Star, I'm back." Cyborg comes walking down the hall, a 20 pound bag of Iams dog food tossed over his shoulder and a plastic bag in hand. The dog perks up once more. "Didn't think I'd find you down here."

Star grins widely. "That is fantastic! You have bought her food?"

"That I have." Cyborg spies the black dog. "Oh, would you look at that! Y'all did great. You clean up nice, little lady." Cyborg grins as he kneels down. The dog, dwarfed even more by the giant robotic man, 'hwoof's lightly as she jumps up, placing her paws on his knee, her tail going a mile a minute and it almost appears as if she grins happily up at him. With a laugh, Cyborg places the plastic bag on the floor, and rubs at the side of her head, scratching behind the dogs ear. "Let's get her fed."

The trio make their way to the Titan's living room, the dog prancing at their side and the two humans making light conversation about different topics, ranging from names, to Beast Boy cleaning up Raven's bathroom, which baffled Cyborg.

The dog couldn't believe she'd have to eat actual dog food. Actual fucking hard dog food that she hated even feeding her own dog. Her own dog...

She supposed it was a lot better than wet dog food. She'd starve before she ate that. It isn't dampening her mood nonetheless.

They go up a flight of stairs before finally making it to the common room, where the kitchen also happened to be. They walk through the automatic door and over to the kitchen. Yet another spacious room, but that wasn't much of a surprise. The carpet obviously needed to be replaced if the dog had anything to say about it.

What should have been fluffy grey carpet, was worn and matted down. Most likely from all the disgusting crap that has surly needed to be cleaned from it along with years of wear.

Her nails click on the tile of the kitchen, and she looks back up at the two. Cyborg sets the bag of food down on the opposite side of the fridge while Star digs things out of the accoumpanying plastic bag.

"What's all this?" Star asks as she pulls dog bowls, a collar, and flea medicine from the bag.

"Things she needs. We could have improvised, but something tells me she won't be claimed. If I'm right, I'll go get the rest to the things she'll need." Cyborg informs as he takes the tin bowels to the sink and rinses them out, drying them off when he's done. The dog sits quietly and patiently, her tail never once slowing down.

"Is this a form of special necklace for dogs?" Star asks as she inspects the thick navy colored band while Cyborg fills a bowl with water and sets it down by the dog food. He fills the other silver bowl with food and sets it next to the water. The dog practically pounces at the water, lapping at it desperately.

"Yeah, it's a collar. You put a tag on it for identification." Cyborg explains as a strange little wand comes out of the end of his arm, and he runs it over the dogs back and neck. "Can't find a microchip." He mumbles quietly, returning his arm to normal. He gently pulls the navy colored collar from Star's grasp, and buckles it around the dogs neck. It buckles at the third hole. Perfect. The dog happily looks up toward Cyborg before going back to her water.

The door again swishes open, and in prances Beast Boy.

"Ey, having a party without me?" Beast Boy jokes as he comes to a halt a few feet from the rest of them.

"If that's what you wanna call it. I hope you cleaned Rae's bathroom right, or it'll be the end of you." Cyborg snickers while he opens the box of Pet Armour flea and tick medication.

Beast Boy looks offended. "Of course I cleaned it right! What do you take me for, man?"

"Not the cleaning type, that's for sure." Cyborg grins and Starfire giggles as he rips the tab from the top of the tube, parting the fur between her shoulder blades and emptying the tube.

"She needs a name." Beast Boy reiterates.

The dogs ears perk, and after she lifts her head from the water, looks back toward the Titan's dual purpose TV. A whirring and metallic whining noise hits her erect ears. Before she can question exactly what it is, an alarm blares across the room, causing her to jump.

"Sounds like that's gonna have to wait, BB." Cyborg approaches the computer, typing away with the other two watching curiously. The door slides open again, Robin rushing through this time.

"Report." He demands calmly, coming up beside Cyborg.

"H.I.V.E. Five, jewelry store on 7th." Cyborg says as Raven let's herself into the room via a swirling black portal. The dog again perks up, her tail speeding up, eyes never leaving the cloaked girl.

"Aw man. You'd think they'd be a little more original!" Beast Boy complains.

"Yet that makes our job that much easier." Star says, her eyes glowing green.

"Titans, go!" The five of them race from the room at Robin's command, and everything falls silent.

The dog huffs. They left her alone. Glorious. If it really had been a trap, that really wasn't the smartest or best move they ever made. But it wasn't, so it really didn't matter.

She continues to lap at the water until the bowl is empty, which when the task is complete, she realizes was another horrible move. Her stomach is empty, now completely filled to the brim with water. There was nothing to absorb it, so it wanted to come back up.

She tried to eat, but only got a few bites of the salty food down before she really started feeling sick.

Abandoning the food, she slowly makes her way over to the couch and hops up, laying down in a corner. She curls in on herself, and is instantly asleep.

The banging of pots and pans along with the sound of chattering wakes her from her slumber slowly. She lifts up her head to find the sun is already high over the bay, the water sparkling pristinely down below.

She's shocked.

So this isn't a dream then?

She's really in Titan's Tower?

Again, fiction type shit right here.

The voices of the Titans register along with the delicious smell of cooking food.

This has to be some kind of sick joke God is playing on her. Or her mind. She'd be satisfied with either answer.

She stares, just listening to the sound of the chattering voices for a few minutes before finally deciding to get a move on. She didn't realize a couch could be so comfortable, and she was bordering on disappointment for having to leave her bed. Which also happened to be the TITAN'S couch. Damn.

"... add up less than an hour ago, almost 8,000 shares and likes, no hits yet though."

"Good start. Social media is a helpful thing."

"Ehey! Speak of the devil! No offense Rae."

"Shut up, Garfield."

"May I make a proposition for a name?" Star asks as the dog sits on her haunches to stare up at Cyborg, who was cooking something that smelled absolutely amazing. She felt much better this morning. Aaaand, she's staring up at Cyborg himself and begging him for food. Again, DAMN!

The other Titans, beside Beast Boy who was cooking himself tofu, sat around the bar like counter.

"Shoot." Cyborg encourages, seemingly eager to hear her suggestion.

"Woah woah woah, now. We still don't know if she's going to be claimed. We can't go getting attached to her." Robin buts in. The dog flicks her ear. He might be being realistic, but still.

"Dude, did you see the condition she was in? Cy can't find a microchip and she has no collar. No ones going to claim her. She might have been someone's pet at some point, but not anymore. Go on, Star." Beast Boy reasons, playfully proping his head up on hus fist.

Robin rolls his eyes. "I don't want to hear it if someone claims her. Don't come crying to me."

"I was thinking perhaps Mar'i? It is quite a popular name on my home planet. Or perhaps Radi? That one is less popular, yet still attractive."

"I was thinking something more along the lines of Hyco or Daisy."

"Daisy!" Cyborg laughs at Beast Boy's suggestion. "Might as well name her Sweetie!" Beast Boy glares at the robotic man. "I like Hyco. More masculine though."

"Macey, Gypsie, Trixie, Bailey, Ebony."

"Woah! Richard, my man! Getting in on the name game!"

"Quiet, Vic. I'm just helping out, 'cause obviously you guys are useless at coming up with names."

"What about you, Rae? Have any suggestions? You read so much you have to have one or two good ones." Cyborg asks.

"Yes! Suggest something. Even Richard has made suggestions." Star claps her hands together happily.

"Leave me out of it." Raven grumbles as she sips on her morning tea, reading through a new book. The language of the writing appeared to be Latin.

"Aw, c'mon Rae, I'll leave you alone for the rest of the day." Beast Boy gives her puppy eyes from over the counter.

Raven glares at him. "Call her Cerberus for all I care." She looks back down at her book.

"Not the guard dog of Hell!"

The dog decides to abandon begging Cyborg, and walks around to Raven, sitting and staring up at her, her ears erect and eyes alert. Her heart jumps slightly, her tail again becoming a feather duster.

Raven.

Her favorite fucking Titan.

What the hell is this coming to?!

She had to resist wanting to tackle the cloaked Titan. Raven notices the dog almost instantly, and glares down at her. "What do you want?" She growls quietly. The dog simply yips at her.

"Hey, what about Apache? After that Bleach character with the different colored eyes?" Beast Boy sounds proud of himself, waving over his eyes for emphasis.

"Ooh! I like it!" Star smiles widely.

"Of course you'd be the one to bring anime into this." Robin sighs. "I don't see a problem with it though."

"I like it, has a nice ring to it with her color. Breakfast is ready y'all!" Cyborg calls, dishing full plates of food out.

"Apache it is then!" Beast Boy calls happily, digging into his tofu eggs and pancakes. "She really likes Raven, doesn't she?"

"Can't imagine why," Raven grumbles with a roll of her eyes.

The newly named Apache is actually quite content with their decision. It could have been way worse. That bowl of water is quickly coming back to bite her though, and she almost pisses herself with the force that it comes on. She holds it though, continuing to beg like any dog would. Raven finally gets overly annoyed, and throws a strip of bacon she didn't want to eat anyway toward the waiting dog. The dog catches it, her jaws snapping together around it. She chews contentedly, then trots toward the door, scratching on it with a whine. She looks back toward the Titan's, a whine in her throat.

It gathers the attention of all five Titans. "Looks like she needs to go out." Robin observes.

"Not it!" Rings out in two sets of masculine voices, then one feminine. The fourth groans loudly.

"Fine, I'll do it, no one get up." Beast Boy puts his fork down a little more firmly than he should have, stomping over to the dog. The door swishes open, and they both disappear through it.

... ... ... ... ... ...

The first few chapters wont be overly different, but it'll start getting there shortly.


	3. The Shadow

Apache trots around the rock the tower resides on. She wanted out of Beast Boy's sight before she emptied her bladder like any proper lady.

Lady? Since when was she ever a lady?

Apache is quite amused by her own thinking as she finally finds a place.

On her way back to Beast Boy, something catches her eye. She comes to an abrupt stop, her ears perked as she looks for the source of the movement.

On the side of the tower, a shadow type figure dissapears around the corner she was walking away from. Her hackles bristle at the uneasiness that explodes through her belly. With a throaty growl, she turns to go looking for whatever it was. It certainly didn't belong to any animal, the figure tall and huminoid, and the smell of something burning being left in its wake was not normal. She feels she needs to find it and figure out exactly what it is so she can alert the Titans. She didn't know how, but she would.

"C'mon Apache! My breakfast is getting cold, dude!" Beast Boy's whining voice hits her ears, and she stalls, staring where the figure disappeared, the smell fading. Her lips pulled back, she turns back around and trots back to the waiting teen. She half feels like ignorong him.

She'd keep a look out. She wouldn't let whatever that was into the tower unnoticed. She'd seen every episode of the show, and if her perception was anything to go by, she knew that was no good.

She didn't know if she was in a time after the last season, or somewhere in between the beginning and end. She couldn't rule ANY villain out, which unsettled her. It could be someone new, or range from the H.I.V.E. Five all the way to Trigon. She honestly hoped for the H.I.V.E. They got their asses kicked by the Titans more than once, but something tells her it won't be that easy.

She follows Beast Boy back through the tower, all the way back to the kitchen, where everyone still resided, keeping herself focused on every shadow and dark place as they go. Just a typical day in the lives of the Titans, she supposed.

She growls quietly.

Her first day with the Titans and as far as she's concerned they're already in danger. There has to be a reason as to why she's no longer in her own dimention, and she contemplates this as she again sits at Raven's feet, laying down this time, facing the way none of the Titans happened to be looking.

Everything happens for a reason.

Everywhere she went she would often be reminded of this simple fact. Nothing happened for no reason, that would defeat the purpose of the universe, and the concept of life itself. If she was here, there was a reason for her to be. This was the thing of dreams, fiction, and the imagination. Out of thousands of fans, she happened to be the one to fall into a universe that was not her own, on an Earth that was not hers, when she has no powers of any kind, as a damn dog.

If that didn't scream "You have a purpose to fulfill here" she didn't know what did. And that shadow. Something is certainly going on, and she does not like it one bit.

~T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S~

It happened to be a quiet day for the Titans. It was Monday after all, so Apache figured all the villains were taking the day off or something. It was night now, though. She had spent the day drifting between Cyborg, Beast Boy, Starfire and even Robin for a few minutes when he had drifted to the kitchen to get himself some lunch. She certainly enjoyed that they gave her free reign, though she spent every minute of it with one Titan or the other.

She'd desperately tried to fallow Raven, but the girl would always evade her attempts, to Apache's irritation. She would alwasy phase through a wall or completetly ignore the over excited dog, to said dog's bewinderment.

The Titans had ordered pizza and decided to have a movie night. Apache couldn't believe that they actually could get delivery all the way out in the middle of the bay. And they get a huge discount and dont even have to pay for delivery!

Apache sits on Cyborg's left side as he pays the pretty blond haired delivery girl. She looks flustered, her cheeks dusted a pretty shade of pink. Apparently she'd never delivered the Titan's pizza before.

"And here," Cyborg flashes her a winning smile as he takes the stack of pizza boxes in one hand, cash in the other. Apache spies a $100 bill in his grasp. "Is your tip, my good lady."

The girls pale blue green eyes almost bug out of her head. "What...? But...?" she almost seems desperate as she gazes, utterly baffled, up at the robotic man.

"You had to come out all this way. We appreciate it, it's no big deal," He gives the girl a friendly smile. Her face loses its contorted appearance, dropping into a gentle, thankful smile.

"Thank you. You all have a great night," her voice is smooth as silk. She backs up a few paces, before turning around to head back to the ferry, her delivery bag in hand.

"You have a wonderful night yourself!" Cyborg closes and locks the door before turning on his heel, balancing the pizza boxes like a pro. Apache trots after him, enjoying the heavenly smell of the hot pizza.

She stares up at Cyborg pleadingly as the elevator door closes. The elevator gives a gentle jolt before taking them upward.

"It does smell good, doesn't it?" he smiles down at the pleading dog. He hums. "Maybe I'll sneak you a piece."

The dog yips, bolting up on her hind legs to give a little dance. The metal Titan booms a laugh.

Another gentle jolt and the elevator doors open. They continue on down the hallway, ascending the flight of stairs to the common room, the dog prancing the entire way.

"Pizza, ya'll!" Cyborg calls happily to the other Titans, two sitting at the counter already, the other two on the couch watching TV. Apache barks out with Cyborg's call. He sets the stack of pizza atop the stove, all four boxes containing large pizzas.

"Took long enough!" Beast Boy crows as he takes the entire box containing a vegetarian pizza.

"Oh, no ya don't," Cyborg snatches the box back, setting it back on the stove. He hands the changeling a paper plate, to which the boy whines at. He stacks three slices on the plate before moving to sit down.

Robin quietly moves around Apache to grab his own plate, placing a piece of pepperoni and a piece of combination on his plate as Cyborg stacks four pieces of his Meat Lover's pizza on his own. When Robin turns away and Star begins stacking two pieces of each pizza on her plate, Cyborg stealthily grabs another piece of the Meat Lover's pizza. He quickly drops his hand infront of the dog's face. Her tail once again becoming a feather duster, she gently grasps the pizza between her teeth. She immediately crouches down to begin chewing the pizza.

When she's chewing the last bit of crust, she glances up as a figure flows by her, an eyebrow arched. The dog swallows, bolting back up, her tail held high as it sweeps the air.

The girl grabs herself a paper plate, placing a single slice of combination pizza on it's surface.

Apache womders why she isn't grabbing more, but decides to not dwell on it. She fallows Raven as she returns to her seat, tentively picking up her piece of pizza and bitting into it as she gazes down at her thick book.

Apache sits, her tail still going a mile a minute.

Apache cocks her head when Raven bites the crust in half. The girl lightly tosses the remaining at the dog without looking. Apache catches it between her teeth, almost expertly.

When the pizzas are polished off, everyone drifts to the couch.

Apparently it's Robin's turn to choose a movie, and Apache can't help but to be curious. It's obvious what type of movies Beast Boy and Cyborg like, and even Starfire, but Robin? She's definitely curious.

Everyone's in their respective seats, Apache's chosen placement on the opposite side of Raven. Raven glares at the black dog from over the rim of her book, but Apache takes it in stride and scoots a little closer to her.

"Alright guys, I picked up Mama, Sinister, and the new Wicked Scary. Cast your votes." Robin holds up the cases. More horror movie? Apache certainly isn't complaining. Now if it was her, The Incredibles all the way, just for the irony. If that movie even existed in this dimention...

"Dude! The new Wicked Scary all the way!" Beast Boy cheers. Of course.

"I'm with BB, man." Cyborg leans back in his seat.

"Sinister sounds quite intriguing." Star inputs, her eyes sparkling.

"My vote was for Mama, but majority rules. Wicked Scary it is." Robin smiles as he puts the disc into the DVD player.

Apache is even more curious. Wicked Scary isn't something that exists back in her own dimention, so she's nervous and excited to see this movie. The way the Titans reacted during that one episode leads her to believe it's absolutely horrendous.

From the opening scene on, all Apache could do was jump and cringe, half the time burrying her face inbetween Raven's back and the couch.

She regrets her life choices. Hard core. She isn't sure at what point she ended up in Raven's lap being hugged to death by the girl, but it happened. Star ended up tucked behind Robin's cape again, and Beast Boy dove behind the couch at one point. Apache wanted nothing more than to scream at the movie's characters for their stupid cliche actions.

Come the movies conclusion, Raven realizes what she's doing and pushes the dog away from her, pulling her hood up to hide her face. Apache lays against Raven's exposed thigh, laying her head between her paws.

"Should have watched Mama." Beast Boy says shakily as he drapes himself over the back of the couch. "Such a great movie." He chuckles.

"That was even scarrier than the last one!" Cyborg huffs out, a hand on his forehead.

"Way scarier." Robin agrees.

"It was amazing!" Star beams out. "The people of Earth come up with the most intriguing ideas."

"You okay, Raven? Now isn't the best time for another haunted house." Cyborg teases her fondly, gently pushing her shoulder.

"Just fine." Raven informs, pulling her hood down. "It's late, and we can't sleep until noon again."

"She's right. Let's get to bed, guys." Robin stretches and yawns as he stands. The Titans begin to file out. Apache follows them, unsure if this is where she's supposed to sleep or not. She watches Raven's cloak tail dissapear longingly.

Cyborg, bringing up the rear, turns around in the door way to look down at Apache. "C'mon, ya can sleep in my room." Apache prances out happily, following Cyborg through the maze that is Titan's Tower to his room. It may not be Raven, but Cyborg is just as great.

When the door slides shut behind them, Cyborg walks past a little work space that is cluttered with various gadgets, wires and computer parts and to a closet.

Track suits and spare parts are revieled as he pulls the sliding door open. He's still got those? Wow.

Apache sits where she's at by the door, watching the metal Titan intently.

Humming to himself, Cyborg pulls a fluffy white blanket from a shelf within the closet, bunching it up into a sort of nest in the corner between the closet and desk.

"There ya are." Cyborg walks over to his gurney like bed, hooking himself up to it while Apache gets herself comfortable, pawing at the white blanket delicately. She plops down, watching Cyborg curiously as he settles down. The dim lights go out, enveloping the room in darkness. She sighs, content and comfortable.

~T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.~

The familiar smell of something burning wakes Apache abruptly. Her head shoots up, ears perked in the direction the door is, light radiating from under it. A shadow passes under the door, light breaking up as if someone passes by.

Of the last five days of her sleeping in here, the most that wondered the halls at this time was Beast Boy getting something to drink or going to the bathroom, and he was not that quiet.

He'd mutter, blunder around, even trip half the time.

Her lips pulled back in a silent snarl, she rises from her makeshift bed and approaches the door stiffly, her heart thumping painfully in her chest. The door doesn't open, so she jumps up, placing her front paws on it. It swishes open, and the front half of her body falls through. She jumps through the rest of the way, looking back and forth down the hall both ways as the door slides shut behind her.

Nothing.

The hall is empty.

The smell still remains, and she follows it.

She sniffs and sniffs under each bedroom door and along the hall. Beast Boy's room smells putrid to say the least. Like old food and filth, but nothing burning. She moves on, her joints stiff.

She stops at Raven's door, a burning smell radiating from under the door.

Thats where the smell is coming from.

Raven doesn't smell like that. And this certainly doesnt smell like burning herbs.

She scratches on the door desperately. It's locked, and won't open for her. She gives a whine, jumping up and using both front paws to scratch on the door. After a few minutes the door swishes open just enough to show half of Raven's face, her cloak disguarded, a black T-shirt and a pair of white silk shorts adorn her body. She had obviously been asleep.

Relief washes over the dog.

The smell intensifies, and Apache stares up at Raven.

"What do you want?" Raven glares down at her. "You scared me with that crap."

Apache gives another whine, scratching lightly on the door with her left paw. She continues to stare up at Raven. She'd be damned if anything happened to Raven. She'd tried over these last few days, almost desperately so, to hang around Raven. It was like she didn't like having even the dog's attnetion on her. She alwasy seemed to develop a slight awkwardness whenever the dog sat at her feet and stared at her.

Raven shuts the door, disregarding the dog. Panic seizes Apache, and she scratches on the door again, doing a light little "whhhoo, whhhoooo" to show she wouldn't hesitate to start barking. You'd think with her hanging around Raven as often as she tried to the last few days it would loosen the Titan up. Of course that isn't that case. When the door doesn't open again, she full out barks.

The door is thrown open, an irritated Raven on the other side.

Apache rushes through, and Raven shuts and locks the door. Raven turns and looks at the dog, which is looking up at her intently, her ears pushed forward and her heterochromia eyes alight.

"What are you so uneasy about?" Raven knits her eyebrows together, obviously picking up on the dog's scattered emotions. Apache let's her bi-colored gaze wonder around the dark and very tidy room.

Empty. Just like the hall. But the smell is strong.

And it doesn't seem like Raven can smell it. She lowers her ears as she again gazes up at the pretty girl.

Raven sighs, and returns to her bed, obviously very confused and now uneasy due to the dog's actions.

She gives the dog a last lingering look before she pulls her covers up to her shoulders and closes her eyes. Apache settles herself on the floor at the foot of Raven's bed, staring out at her dark room. Too many shadows to watch at once.

Uneasiness grips her belly, and she vaguely wonders what she's gotten herself into.

When Raven's breathing evens out, Apache jumps up on the foot of the bed and plops down. Better vantage point. Nothing was going to get Raven, or any of the Titans, if she had any say in the matter, even if she was having second thoughts and was becoming more scared than anything.

Raven's bedside clock ticks as the minutes turn into hours. She wishes she knew how to read those types of clocks. If she was guessing, it looked to be about three give or take. Her grandparents use to have a clock that ticked so loud on their fireplace mantle that it always made it hard for her to sleep when she slept over due to the eerie nature of the tone. Horror movies and ghost stories easily cement that into her head. The tone was almost just asking to have something jump out suddenly at the room's occupents.

Something on Raven's desk tips, and makes a little _tink_ sound. A bottle, maybe?

Apache is instantly on her feet, her hackles risen, tail out straight, and lips pulled back. Her heart is again beating in her chest painfully, causing her veins to feel almost as though they're throbbing.

The shadow! There it is! Coming this way!

Apache breaks out in merderous snarls that wrack her body. The smell is so strong it's sickening, she can't even smell the pixie or jasmine smells. Her ears are flat against her skull, her stomach twisting in painful knots, and her fight or flight reflex is screaming at her.

The shadow just gives a throaty chuckle, continuing its advance. Apache breaks out in deafening barks in quick successions, like an angry German Shepard.

Raven bolts up, her eyes landing first on Apache, then on the advancing figure. She gasps, amethyst eyes wide.

Apache lunges slightly at the figure in warning, snapping her teeth and continuing to bark madly. Doubt clouds her mind. Could she really protect Raven and the others?

"Azarath matreon zinthos!" A shield of black energy cuts the room in half, halting the advancing being. It gives a loud laugh, and disappears in a puff of smoke. The smell instantly fades.

Apache falls silent, her hackles still risen, her lips still pulled back. Raven drops the shield, and a lingering puff of the smell hits Apache's nose before disappearing.

That laugh. It sounds familiar to her.

She raises her right ear.

"How did you know?" Raven huffs out, breath heaving from being woken up in such a mannor. Apache just turns around to stare at her, doubt and fear ricocheting through her mind.

The tower is eerily quiet. Almost too quiet after such an event.

The look on Raven's face tells Apache Raven knows exactly what that was, but she's not voicing it.

Apache sits, facing Raven. It's only now she realizes she's shaking madly, the adrenaline still pumping through her body.

Raven sighs, seemingly making her mind up about something before pulling her covers back up and laying back on her side. She gives a very quiet whistle, to which the dog tilts her head.

"C'mon, you mutt." Apache crawls up next to Raven with a little wag of her tail, elation, pride and a sense of accomplishment rushing through her. Raven gives the shaking dog's head a soft pat, before laying still.

Apache, still unsure if the shadow will return, is reluctant to go back to sleep along with Raven. After a while of laying there and not smelling the burning smell again, she allows herself to doze off.

Something is up for sure.

 **... ... ... ... ... ...**

 **I think I'm liking the improvments. Still getting better or no?**


	4. Brave Helper

**Whoop whoop I'm on a roll today! Enjoy chapter 4!**

Apache is awoken a few hours later when Raven stirs. The sun is just peaking over the bay, the early morning rays of light shining through the glass that makes up an entire wall of Raven's room. She watches Raven curiously as she throws her covers off, tucking them back in place when she stands, and heads over to a closet in the corner of the room.

She pushes it open, and within is a dresser, and a single cloak hanging from a hanger. Farther back is half a row of hanging civilain wear, all appearing to be dark colored.

Apache wants to desperately laugh. Raven is obviously nothing like Robin! Robin has tones of uniforms! But on the downside, what ever happens if her cloak gets damaged beyond repair? Or so filthy its not worth washing? Which both scenarios are bound to happen. She probably has more in one of the drawers of the dresser Apache would think. She has an urge to snoop through Raven's cloths. It would be difficult for her to snoop in this condition. Or really at all...

Raven pulls the second to top drawer open, and pulls out a fresh leotard. Apache lays back down and stares out the window at the glittering bay when Raven begins removing her pajamas. She may like women but that didn't mean she ogled them when the chance arose, even if she really wanted to. And believe her, she wants to.

"Apache." Raven calls after quickly dressing herself. Apache springs up and off the bed, following Raven out of her room happily, her tail lazily swaying back and forth. She prances along happily, leading Raven, who has a book under her arm, to the common room. They're the first ones in. Cyborg was usually one of the last. Beast Boy was always the last. The thought amuses Apache greatly as she gazes behind herself at the cloaked Titan. Apache walks after Raven as they enter the commom room, heading toward the kitchen.

Raven fills her tea kettle with water and sets it on the stove to boil. Apache, thirsty, goes to her bowl only to find it empty. Put out, she sits on her haunches with her ears back. Her ears perk and she watches in awe when the empty bowl is enveloped in black energy, shooting over to Raven. It comes to a stop under the sink faucet, to which Raven flips the water on to fill the bowl. Once full, it glides back to its original place. With a wag of her tail Apache laps at the water thankfully.

Raven cradles her book by its spine, flipping pages as she finishes them. Apache lays down by her food and water bowls, gazing up at the reading girl.

When the tea kettle whistles, Apache jumps in surprise, growling for a moment until she realizes exactly what it is. Raven simply arches an eyebrow at her as she moves to fix her tea.

Raven takes her usual seat at the far end of the bar by the wall, Apache fallowing her to lay at her feet.

Not long after Robin decides to make an appearance.

"Morning, Raven." He says cheerily as he puts a pot of coffee on.

"Morning." Raven responds, flipping a page in her book. Apache eyes him when he comes around the edge of the bar.

"Is... Is that Apache?" Robin spies the dog as he takes his own seat at the bar a seat away from Raven. "I thought she sleeps with Cy?"

"Let's just say she came knocking in the middle of the night and was quite persistent." Raven sips her tea. Apache inwardly laughs at Raven's description of last nights events. If she didn't want to tell Apache wouldn't.

"If you say so." Robin obviously doesn't know what to a say to that.

~T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.~

Later in the afternoon Raven decides she needs a little time away from the tower. Apparently all the Titans were extremely surprised that she had actually let Apache hang around her on this fine day. Raven still made someone else take Apache out when the times came, but other than that Apache actively sought Raven out and was more than pleasantly surprised when the girl allowed her to stay. Don't get her wrong, she loves all the Titan's company, but she couldn't get enough of Raven now that she actually let her hang around.

Plus her and Silkie really didn't get along. Silkie had tried to eat her more than once and Apache was not all for that. That fuzzy and smelly thing was not her type of thing to enjoy being around, and she loves everything that's fuzzy with a passion. That was precisely the reason she couldn't sleep in Star's room, and Star had tried. Apache had more than once moved to opposite sides of Star's room to get away from that gross worm over the course of the night but it would chase her down and continuously try to consume her. Needless to say she needed another bath the next morning.

Apache had sat at one point, curious, as Raven spilt bottles of some sort of concotion, like salts, around the borders of her room. When she was done, she went to making more. Apache guessed it was to keep whatever that was last night out, and she was going to go about protecting the entire Tower.

Apache's favorite part of the day by far was when Beast Boy made a joke about Raven being a cat person that Raven did not take too kindly to. It got Beast Boy hit over the head and it had been hilarious. As much as Apache loves Beast Boy, Raven's temper toward him is way funnier. They certainly have a connection. She used to have a similar connection to a friend of hers. They acted like they couldn't stand eachother and annoyed eachother most of the time but they would do anything for the other at the same time. After awhile it becomes more of a game than real annoyance, and Apache would bet anything it's the same way between Raven and Beast Boy.

Apache is certainly nervous. Her first time being teleported by Raven. How else were they going to get to the city with just them? Cyborg would never let anyone else drive his precious baby.

Raven had already informed Robin that she was going to go to the city, and Robin had suggested Raven take Apache with her, to Apache's excitement. Strength in numbers after all. She'd be alone but not really alone. Raven had reluctantly agreed, causing smugness to wash through the dog.

So here they are, Raven's hand hooked on Apache's collar as she mutters her mantra. Apache squeezes her eyes shut as a cloud of black envelops the two of them. She feels a tingling feeling, then cement under her paws. She opens her eyes to see they're in an alley way.

She sighs in relief as she gazes around the dingey cement and brick walls.

She follows after Raven, the girl wearing black leggings with jean shorts over them along with a black T-shirt and tan boots, a book yet again under her arm. As far as Apache's concerned, Raven is rocking the look. Obviously her civilian wear.

Apache could get used to this look, not that her legs weren't great to look at.

Apache prances along at Raven's side, offleash. The beauties of them not having a leash for her and her being able to prove she'd be just fine without one.

The two weave through the crowd for about two blocks until coming to a slightly quieter place with a lot less foot traffic. Raven pushes a glass door open, and Apache follows her through. The smell of tea is strong, along with baking bread. It's a small, dimly lit place with plants strategically placed around it, the muted colors giving it a homey feel. It's also mostly empty beside the few college kids studying in the corner of the shop. Apache's tail is sweeping the air as she gazes around the neat little space.

"He-hey, Raven! It's been awhile!" Apache looks up at the front counter to see a man in at least his 50s, a scraggly yet neatly trimmed beard adorning his face, grey evident in his not so brown hair. His brown eyes are alight with humor and life.

"Hey, Val. It's only been a week." Raven smiles lightly at the man as the two approach the counter.

"Who's your friend?"

"Her name's Apache."

"Beautiful dog." Apache could just blush at the flattery. He whistles, patting at the edge of the wooden counter in invitation. Apache jumps up, and the man breaks off a piece of the muffin he had been eating. Apache takes it gently from his hand. Fresh baked. The best. She likes this place already.

He rubs over Apache's ears, and when he sits back, Apache hops back down onto all fours. She gazes around the shop again curiously.

"So what's all been happening?" Raven questions.

"Oh, same old same old. Boring as ever. You're the highlight of my day, as usual." The man laughs. "So what can I get for ya? The usual?"

"Please." Raven nods politely.

"By the way, if you ever want to get rid of the dog, you know where to take her." 'Val' nods toward the dog, who tilts her head curiously. They better not give her away! She'd just keep finding her way back, even if Val seemed like an okay dude so far. She'd rather spend her time with the Titans.

"Of course." Apache stays in stride beside Raven as Raven takes a window seat in the corner of the shop. Apache lays down in front of the booth, staring up at Raven. Was there ever a time she didn't have her book worm of a nose in a book? Reading is a wonderful pastime, she supposed. At one point she could finish a 700 page book in a day so she wasn't one to talk about someone being a bookworm. She hates hypocrites after all.

It's not too long when the man comes bearing a little tray. He sets a cup and plate down infront of Raven, to which she thanks him. A cup of tea and chocolate glazed donut.

Apache didn't expect him to have something for her, so it surprises her when he bends down, an unfrosted donut in his grasp. He obviously intends for her to take it.

She takes it gently from him, her tail wagging. He pats her head while she chews happily and walks away. This is a place she could easily get used to coming to often. The donut is even more soft and flaky than she remembered them ever being. Obviously she misses the deep fried pure sugar treat more than she could express. She hadn't had them in months, after all.

They sit for awhile in the silence of the shop, Apache dozing and Raven reading. Raven obviously just wanted a change in scenery. And possibly some quiet. Beast Boy or Cyborg pester Raven often, and this would prevent them from doing so while also getting her out of her stuffy room.

Apache wonders when they'll play Stank Ball next. She's curious and really wants to watch a game play out.

Raven is in the middle of sipping on her tea when her communicator beeps. Apache's head shoots up to look at Raven as she hurriedly sets her tea down to pull the communicator out of her pocket. She flips it open.

Robin's voice radiates through the air. "Raven, Control Freak is at the movie theatre on 9th Street. Meet us there."

"Control Freak? Yeah, I'll be right there." Raven claps her communicator shut and slides it back into her pocket. She pulls out a 10 dollar bill along with a 5, setting them on the table. She slides out of the booth, stepping over Apache, who jumps up to follow Raven as she strides toward the door. "I'll see you later, Val."

"You be careful, Raven. See you soon." Val smiles knowingly after the two, moving to clean up Raven's table.

The two exit the cafe, Apache having to trot to keep up with Raven's brisk pace. Apache follows Raven down the nearest alley. She's awestruck when Raven's body becomes enveloped in a dull violet light and in place of her civilian wear is her usual leotard and cloak. She ends up getting whapped in the face by the cloak due to her close proximity to the Titan. Raven is truly a badass. Since when can someone completely change their attire with magic? No one. Since never. At least in Apache's universe.

Apache is startled when Raven grabs hold of her collar once again and the tingling feeling envelopes her. When they're back on solid ground, they're in a movie theatre.

It's absolute chaos. People are running out of a viewing room screaming, some doused in soda, others with popcorn. What the hell could Control Freak really be up to to cause so much chaos? He's a freakin couch potato with a unibrow that can't live without a remote. Apache drops her left ear.

The stream of people ceases completely and Raven calmly walks into the room, Apache right on her cloak's tail. When they round the two bends that lead them to the seats, Apache is confused. Control Freak is laughing maniacally, ghosts, monsters and other things floating around, destroying the theatre. Is it... _Ghostbusters_?

It makes sense but at the same time it doesn't. Why would he want to ruin the viewing? Apache can't help but think how much of an idiot he is.

"Still watching too much TV, I see." Raven drawls bordly. Control Freak starts, his head whipping to look at Raven with a scowl.

"Well well, back again?" Control Freak sneers. Apache hears foot falls rushing up behind them. She looks behind Raven and herself to see the other four Titans.

"You're destroying private property, what do you honestly expect?" Raven drawls out again. Apache turns her gaze back to the bumbling idiot that is Control Freak.

"Ghostbusters? Aww man! Have you no shame?!" Beast Boy says, dramatically falling to his knees, his hands on his face.

"Not the point right now, Grass Stain." Cyborg says, gearing up for the fight.

"You're going to jail, Control Freak. It's as simple as that. So do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?" Robin says, using his 'leaderly tone.'

"What do you think?" Control Freak hits a button on his remote and half of the mass of ghosts and monsters turn toward the Titans. The Titans jump into action on Robin's command.

Apache gets to thinking as the Titans and artificial creatures clash. They were easily being taken out by the Titans, but more came in their place, almost like a hydra. They can't quite get to Control Freak to grab him.

Apache ducks from a starbolt with a yelp, the wall explodes behind her from being hit by it. She crawls up the stairs quickly on her belly, dodging ghosts, broken seats, spilt soda and popcorn and crawling through the isles, jumping over chairs when she needs to. She dodges Beast Boy, in the form of a leopard, and jumps over to the next lower row of seats. She's almost behind Control Freak.

She has to dodge Robin, who had been thrown, but he catches himself on a chair and jumps back into action.

She yelps when her tail is abruptly grasped and yanked.

She catches sight of a nasty looking ghost before she's thrown.

She tumbles in the air before hitting the far wall, all the way above the highest row of seats, with a breathless yelp. She hits the hard lenolium floor. All she can do is lay there and gasp.

She gives herself a moment to catch her breath before sitting up, giving her dizzy head a shake. She clumsily pushes herself up, stumbling into the row of seats to her left. She stumbles out to the stairs, glancing down.

There's that idiot.

She gives a growl.

She slowly stumbles down the carpeted steps as quietly as she can until she's four rows behind Control Freak, his focus on Beast Boy and Cyborg, who are tag teaming and being overwhelmed.

With her ears back, she shifts her body like a cat ready to pounce, her muscles winding tight. When she's sure he won't see her coming, she pushes off the step with all her might, barreling into Control Freak's back. They both go barreling down the steps head over heels until they reach the bottom. They come to a stop, both their bodies aching, but both spring up anywaay.

With a snarl, Apache latches onto the sleeve of Control Freak's trench coat. He yelps, swinging her around, attempting to dislodge her teeth from his coat.

Apache doesn't see it coming and she didn't know it was possible for the heavy set man to reach that way, but his boot catches her square between her ear and eye. She drops his sleeve, her head swimming. She gives her head a hearty shake before focusing on Control Freak's retreating form.

She can't let him get away!

With a mighty snarl, she takes a few shaky bounds and she latches on to the back of his trench coat.

Control Freak shouts, terrified, and tries to kick her away. He loses all his focus on the fight, which is finally starting to dissipate due to his distraction.

When Control Freak flails out, he accidentally throws his remote. With a startled yelp, he tries to dive after it, but ends up on his belly due to Apache's hold on his clothing. The remote hits the hard floor of the theatre and breaks.

Control Freak lets out a mortified squeak. The remaining creatures disappear in puffs of smoke.

Robin picks up the cracked remote while Cyborg lifts the downed couch potato by the back of his coat. Apache lets him go, shaking slightly as she gazes up at Cyborg before her eyes travel to find Raven. She inspects each Titan, and when she deems them uninjured, her eyes once again train on Raven.

"Looks like you got taken out by a dog." Beast Boy smiles widely.

"A girl dog." Cyborg snickers.

"That's not even remotely funny." Raven rolls her eyes.

"Was that a pun I heard?" Beast Boy says slyly. Raven, obviously exasperated, decides not to play on it and walks a few feet away from the green grinning idiot.

"Apache has helped a great deal!" Star smiles widely as Apache moves to sit between Star' and Raven's feet.

"C'mon guys, celebrate later. We need to get Control Freak out to the police." Robin says, turning on his heel. Beast Boy and Cyborg chatter back and forth as the seven of them make their way out to the front of the theatre, where police are waiting with blaring lights and a fire truck in case it was needed.

Two officers are waiting by the glass doors with handcuffs, ready to take the criminal that's not so much of a criminal than a neusance. Cyborg hands Control Freak over and he's shoved into the back of a police cruiser while Robin is pulled aside to give his statement. Apparently his is the only one the police want so the other four just stand aside and wait patiently for Robin to finish.

A news van pulls up, Apache notices. An older yet attractive hispanic lady hops out of the passenger side. The driver pulls camera equipment from the back of the van. They strategically place themselves infront of the theatre, ensuring the four waiting Titans are in the background of the shot.

The man behind the camera points at the lady. She immediately begins her report. Apache can't hear exactly what she's saying, but after a moment she motions to the Titans. Beast Boy grins a wide smile, waving with an unnecessary amount of emphasis. Star gives a simple smile, but other than that they ignore the duo.

"Without Apache, I believe we would be battling quite a bit longer than we had." Star says, patting Apache's head contentedly, who is sitting next to the Tamarania.

"I think you're completely right. I swear, that dude never knows when to quit." Cyborg wrinkles his nose slightly in distaste, shooting a displeased look at the news anchor. They finally move to attempt to catch a shot of Robin and the offender in the back of the police cruiser.

"Hey, it's going to keep Robin from complaining that it was getting too quiet." Beast Boy reasons.

"Yeah that's true. Control Freak is just busy work." Raven says, her eyes falling on Apache before again rising to glance around their surroundings.

Starfire gasps suddenly, drawing the attention of her other four companions. "Look!" Star holds her hand up, blood evident on the tips of her thin fingers. Apache gazes up at the blood, confused. It's... Hers?

Wow, when the hell did that happen? Her head doesn't hurt.

She thumps her tail a few times against the concrete.

"Is Apache bleeding?" Beast Boy asks, concerned. He bends down.

"It looks like it." Cyborg grumbles, bending down infront of Apache and gently looking around Apache's head. "Did you guys see Control Freak do anything to her?"

"She had him preoccupied for quite a bit, he must have done something to her to get her away from him." Star sounds concerned, her eyes shinning with concern.

"There. There's a gash right here." Cyborg motions to the side of Apache's head where the fur is longer around her ears. "Doesn't look too bad."

Raven kneels down next to the dog, gently placing her hand over where the gash is. She mutters her mantra, and Apache's head is once again filled with screams of agony, maniacal laughter, begging, crying... Then it's over just as quickly as it started. The fog is slightly clearer this time, but she still can hardly make anything out.

She didn't realize her head had been ringing from being kicked until Raven had finished healing her and her head went clear. Apache huffs lightly as the two Titans stand, Cyborg giving her a rough pet, and return to their places to wait for Robin. She stretches, able to breathe. She wags her tail lazily before moving to lean against Raven's leg. The girl pats the dog's head awkwardly.

The ride home is absolutely amazing. The T car is cramped, only being built to acomidate five, but it works. Apache lays at Robin's feet on the passenger side floorboard. She's just small enough to fit and for Robin to gently lay his legs over her in a way that they're both comfortable.

She dozes off on the ride, equally proud and elated that she was able to help them today. She can't wait to do it again.

Once back at the Tower, the Titans go about their usual afternoon activities. Apache goes to the common room to get herself some water, then heads to where she figured Raven would be, sneaking past the other four Titans. In this case, it would be Raven's room.

It's sunset, it would be time for bed in a few hours.

She scratches lightly on the door, and it opens after a few seconds. She pushes past Raven, who in turn sighs. "Yeah, come right on in, don't mind me."

Apache curls up at the foot of Raven's bed on the floor, her head instantly in between her paws. Raven sits back on her bed, continuing her previous activity that Apache doesn't know what is due to her lack of interest.

She's instantly asleep.


	5. Gospel

The day of reckoning had finally arrived.

Robin's two week deadline.

Over two and a half million shares on Cyborg's post and thousands of wishing well and luck comments but no one had claimed Apache. Which Apache was relieved and unsurprised about.

Three Titans sit stiffly around the common room, two in the kitchen, one on the couch watching TV. It's not that Robin was late, oh no. The three of them are worried about their leaders verdict, two moreso than the third. Though Raven would never admit it, she was a tad bit nervous herself. If her taking longer than usual to flip pages in her book gave Apache anything to go by.

Apache currently sits with Cyborg, splayed out next to the side of his leg. His right leg keeps persistently bouncing up and down, which Apache had never seen him do. He absentmindedly rubs up and down her side, occasionally passing over her expossed ear. Starfire keeps sighing and splaying herself over the counter she currently sits at, obviously impatient, which was pissing Raven off to say the least. Each Titan stays quiet despite themselves, Apache more than happy to join in the stiff silence.

All four perk, even if ever so slightly, when the door to the common room swishes open. Of course it would be the Boy Wonder himself.

"Good morning, Raven. You two are up early. Is there a special occasion?" Robin smiles as he absentmindedly pours himself a cup of routein coffee, adding a small amount of sugar before taking a sip.

"There is no important occasion to speak of, really. It is moreso of a deadline that was set that we are quite eager to hear what you have to say about. We are the nervous you could say." Star's eyes twinkle with hope. At this, Apache pulls her head up, glancing at Cyborg, who had his head tilted ever so slightly toward the kitchen area. She stares at the couch's back, wishing she could see through it. She tilts her head farther to the side, enjoying the smell of fresh brewed coffee.

Robin crosses his arms, one in front of the other on the kitchen counter right in front of Star, his cup of coffee right next to him as he leans over. "I take it you're talking about Apache?" Robin has a slight smirk about his features, unnerving the two female Titans, one masking it and straight up acting like she can't see him or is even listening.

"That would be correct." Star sounds slightly worried, wringing her hands.

Robin is quiet for a good minute, just staring around. _Asshole_ , Apache thinks. He's dragging this out on purpose. Apache drops her right ear, uneasiness brewing in her gut.

Finally, _finally_ , he speaks up. "If you guys had forgotten, I wasn't going to say anything. You're all so attached to her and it's working so well there's no point in getting rid of her." Robin sips his coffee. Apache can breath again. She hadn't even realized she wasn't breathing. "If she's not fixed, she'll have to be though. What kind of example would we be setting by not getting our pet spayed?"

"Oh, thank you, Robin! This is simply glorious!" Star literally flies out of her seat and spins Robin around in the air. Robin is not too happy about it on account of his arms being pinned to his side's while Star crushes him in a death hug. Apache knows he secretly loves it as she inwardly laughs at them. She can see them all the way up in the air from where she lays. Cyborg chuckles and gives her a hearty pat on her head. She fwaps her tail happily, it thumping against the couch.

She lays her head on Cyborg's robotic leg as the metal man turns around, a grin on his features. "Yo Rich, what's on the agenda for today?"

Star sets Robin down and she sits back in her original seat, grinning ear to ear. Robin clears his throat. "Well, I would like a training session sometime this week, but other than that I don't really have anything planned unless someone would like to spar or the like."

"How 'bout a trip to the park? It's been awhile since we've barbecued and the last few days have been quiet."

"That actually doesn't sound like a bad idea." Robin sounds interested.

"That sounds absolutely amazing! The last time we went to the park it was so much fun!"

"And if I recall correctly, Beast Boy caused mayhem as usual. The secluded beach a little ways down the bay sounds like a much better place to go. There won't be as much temptation for him." Raven doesn't even lift her eyes from her book.

"The beach sounds even more fun." Star's eyes twinkle at Robin. Apache agrees, despite already having had her fill of saltwater. She would love to go to the tidepools and see what she could find.

"Except we'll be farther away from the city if something happens. The beach does sound great, but we won't be able to respond as quickly." Robin reasons, sipping his coffee.

"You're forgetting I can teleport everyone right to the scene, you just don't like the feeling." Raven rolls her eyes. They always forgot just how powerful she truly is, Apache guarantees. She feels irritation at that speculation. Raven shouldn't be one to be underestimated.

Robin looks at the other two Titans, silently asking for help. Star obviously didn't want to help him out worth anything if her raised eyebrow was anything to go by. Raven's logic was more than good enough for her.

"How 'bout this, Rae. Let's just go to the park today, cause we have to make a pit stop at a few stores anyway and it'll be easier, and I'll make sure Beast Boy doesn't cause any trouble? We'll go to the beach next time." Cyborg says after a moment, ever the compromiser.

"Whatever suits your fancy." Raven flips another page. If you really looked you could see Robin deflate in relief.

Star claps her hands together. "I can't wait for next time."

"Well, when do you all want to head out?" Robin asks.

"I say let's give it an hour or two, so we have time to pack our things up and get BB up and ready." Cyborg suggests.

"Sounds good. So let's say," Robin looks to the clock on the microwave. "Seven thirty? I'm sure it'll take a minute at the stores and I know it takes a while for the briquettes to burn."

"Yeah, we won't be barbecuing until at least noon." Cyborg assures. "There's that pond at the back of the park we can fish from if that's something anyone wants to do. I'm glad it's a catch and release only thing." Cyborg stands, giving Apache an apology pat at her put out look. She jumps off the couch and follows behind the metal titan. Her tail was ever a feather duster.

Three Titans chatter as they make their ways out of the common room to pack up whatever they'd need for the day, the door swishing shut behind them as Apache looks up at Raven, who hadn't moved.

Oh how Apache wished she could talk! Yell, scream, anything! _Heelllllooooooooo_! She screams at Raven in her head to no avail. She huffs, laying down where she is.

The last week and a half had been fun, but its irritating and taxing that she can't communicate. She's completely alone until someone talks to her offhandedly. She can't interact with Beast Boy's jokes, physically help Cy with his gadgets and working on his car, braid Star's pretty hair, talk, flirt and attempt to joke with Raven. She'd hung around them all in the last week and a half, and she desperately wants to do more than lay there or perform tricks when they wanted to do a 'training session' with her.

She plasters her ears to her skull, hard heterochromia eyes gazing at the pretty girl immersed in her book.

Seven thirty rolls around extremely quickly and before the Titan's know it, everyone's piled in the car ready to go. Apache is once again tucked under Robin's legs, and Beast Boy is slumped tiredly against the window, drool dribbling down his chin.

The kicker is that they're all dressed in civilian wear. Robin in a red T-shirt and light washed jeans and his usual boots. He kept his mask, which didn't surprise Apache at all. Robin is too recognisable on the streets of Jump City. Star decided to throw on an adorable purple sleeveless blouse with a lightly ruffled front and a Jean skirt with a black pair ot boots. No surprise Beast Boy threw on some cloths that HAD to have been worn before and that had to have been laying around for a long time on account of their smell. An orange and white baseball tee with a pair of black pants, an orange hat and black tennis shoes with orange laces complete his outfit. Raven threw on a black three quarter sleeve shirt, dark jeans, navy shoes, and for the chilly bay morning, a navy sweatshirt. Cyborg again adorned the track suit, but with the hood down.

Apache figured by the down hill decline then steady rise that they were driving through an access tunnel. It makes perfect sense that they would have to use one living on an island. Last time they'd went through the tunnel Apache had been passed out, so of course she missed it. The road is so smooth and flows so well Apache doesn't know what to think. She's never been on such a smooth road before and she would be lying if she said she wasn't a little bit impressed. She wouldn't be surprised if the tunnel is made up of some type of metal or smooth concrete. It's certainly dark in the car, all but the lights from the dash.

It was probably about twenty minutes of silence before the car stops and it jolts upward suddenly. Apache attempts to jolt up, catching herself on Robin's legs and can't quite see out the window, which is being flooded with light. Robin shushes her, gently pushing her back down amd telling her to lay down. Apache grudgingly does, again put out. She feels like baring her teeth at him, but doing so in this cramped car was probably not the best time. She keeps forgetting just how much she can't stand having to obey someone. It was all fine and good two weeks ago but now it's just getting old.

The car drives down a bumpy and short path, before pulling into early morning Jump City traffic.

"Alright guys, here's the plan. We have two stores to hit, five people, and one dog. We need to stop at Walmart and a pet store. Whose going where?" Cyborg asks, glancing around the car and in the rear view mirror.

"I think the girls should go to the pet store and we'll take Walmart." Robin says. Beast Boy doesn't object on account he's passed out in the back seat. Apache lifts her left ear.

"What?" Raven asks in disbelief while Star squeals happily.

"Oh how I love pet stores! They're so interesting and have such cute animals." Star gushes, a twinkle in her eye.

"And you can take Apache in with you. We can't take her into Walmart with us." Apache rolls her eyes.

"Here's your list, Raven." Cyborg passes a slip of paper along with two $20 bills. Raven sighs in distaste as she carefully takes the items from Cyborg's grasp, stuffing them in her sweater pocket. "We'll drop you girls off first and pick you up as soon as we get what we need."

Cyborg cruises through a yellow light, which Robin chastises him for. Apache all but rolls her eyes, a huff making its way past her muzzle.

Ten more minutes of stop and go before the car pulls over an all too familiar bump in the road signaling the car entering a parking lot. Not like Apache can see anything. She did know the traffic was flowing pretty smooth this morning so that was something.

The car comes to a complete stop. "Here we are! It shouldn't be more than forty-five minutes."

"Great." Raven says sarcastically as she opens the car door and steps out, followed by Star. Star shuts the door as Robin opens his. Apache jumps out quickly, before he changes his mind, she decides, and quickly comes to sit right next to Raven as the car pulls away, for once her tail remins motionless.

"Let's just get this over with." Raven pulls the list from her pocket, reading it over before glancing down at Apache. The dog stares back, one ear lowered.

"Do not be the downer, this will be fun." Star smiles as she looks both ways before striding across the parking lot. Raven follows absentmindedly with Apache at her side.

The little pet store is adorable as any other. Bird and rabbit cages are set right outside the glass door and display window, cheaply priced for the local pet shop that it is, rabbits and guiney pigs sit in a glass display within the display window, nestled in little piles, playing and shifting through the pristine shavings.

Star holds the glass door for her companions and they enter into the slightly musky smell that accompanies any pet shop, along with the sounds of chirping birds and running fish tanks. The shop had to have only been open for a few minutes at most, its deserted, not counting the young geeky looking college boy at the counter.

"Good morning." He grins happily at the three of them.

Apache wrinkles her nose slightly at the shops irritable looking toucan in the corner behind the boy. Obviously not for sale.

She sees a cage of cockatiels, beautiful yellows, greys and oranges flooded through the clean cage. Her dad used to have a male one, before he gave him to her aunt. In the cage above them is a beautiful white cockatoo. Oh how she's always wanted one. Chinchillas, rats, mice and hamsters in a little 'rodentia' type facility on the other side of the rabbits and guiney pigs catch her eye for a split second.

"Um, good morning," Raven begins to hesitantly converse with the man.

Apache watches as the boy becomes slightly flustered as Raven approaches him. He smiles at her shyly, his cheeks dusting. Apache lowers her ears, growling quietly. She watches Raven, who looks as if she takes no notice as she explains what it is she needs. Apache huffs in relief, still feeling slightly defensive of the pretty girl.

Apache glances around the little shop once more when a flash of blue and light catches her eye.

She instantly takes off running through the small isles toward it.

She ignores the two female Titans calling her name as her claws skid across the enamel in an attempt to slow her momentum when she reaches her destination. Her body taps lightly against the glass, slowing her the rest of the way. She backs up a few feet and firmly seats herself in front of the wall of fishtanks containing jewel like fish flitting around in each of the many small tanks. Cychlids, catfish, guppies, arowanas, loaches, snails, shrimp, tetras, and many more. Star is right there next to her within a split second.

"Apache, you must not do that again." Star says. Shes too innocent to sound cross, Apache decides. "Look at all the little fish." Star crouches down next to her, and points into the bottom take at a cute little Panda Corydora. "That one is simply adorable!" Apache's eyes fall half lidded in smugness. Shes not the only one that thinks those cute little things are cute. Take that her mom!

When Star stands and begins cooing at the fish in the top tanks Apache can't see, she stands on her back paws to the best of her ability to see.

"What... are you doing?" Raven asks hesitantly, trying not to ruffle the plastic bag in her grasp. Apache drops back to all fours, turning her head to glance at the usually cloaked Titan.

"Looking at the fish. Theyre so pretty and interesting." Star replies with a huge smile.

"You've been standing here for twenty minutes. There's puppies over there."

"Puppies?!" Star disappears through the isles to the other side of the store. Apache stays rooted right where she is, inspecting a blood parrot fish thats trying to attack her through the glass. Raven kneels down next to her with a hum.

Apache looks over to Raven as she grasps her collar, turning it til she finds the metal loop she's looking for. In her hand is a navy colored spade shaped dog tag, a name and number etched into its front in light blue lettering and numbers. Raven attatches the tag to Apache's collar and stands. Apache feels a burst of pride and excitment before losing it again. She huffs, dropping Raven's gaze to look back to the parrot fish.

Raven hums after looking Apache over for a moment and heads the opposite way that Star did. Puppies and fish are nice, but reptiles and tarantulas are more interesting to her.

Apache sighs, laying her ears back. This is a huge adjustment she'd only just begun to grasp. She couldn't even remember why or how she ended up here to begin with. She knows she has a mom, but can't remember a name, face, anything. It's killing her on the inside. She knows she has a dog, yet can't remember. She can't even remember friends, a school, her last memory on her Earth from her universe. Yet she knows it's there. Its little things she has to physically see to trigger memories, like these fish.

She didn't know she loved fish so much. She has a fish tank at home too. And a part time job at a pet store. Well there goes that job.

She knows more about superheroes than she knows herself. She knows all five of the Titan's real names, yet not her own.

This unnerves her.

She knows she's an imposter in this universe, yet the last two weeks are the only world she knows. She knows the DC universe should only exist in comics, movies, TV and pop culture. She knows she would take Marvel over DC any day. Yet here she is. She knows herself yet doesn't at the same time.

For a moment she feels violated, like she hadn't had a choice in the matter, that she had been forced here. But she also remembers how fortunate she is at the same time. How many fans would conduct a literal Hunger Games for what she's going through right now? Probably at least 99℅ of them.

This scares her.

Was this a time when the saying be careful what you wish for applies? She honestly didn't know.

What a fanfiction that Hunger Games idea would be though...

She hears her name being called and turns around. She can see the glass door to the shop, being blocked by the two female Titans. The boys must be back.

With a huff and her head low, she trots down the isle toward the two young women. The boys are waiting in the car right outside the door.

"Took you guys long enough." Raven says as they pile back into the car.

"Beast Boy was the one that kept getting sidetracked."

"Hey! I did not!" Well, Beast Boy' obviously awake now. Apache rolls her eyes fondly.

"Dude, when you start going through the cloths amd hats and start trying everything on and purposely divert to the electronic section to look at movies, you're sidetracked." Cyborg says. He can't help but be slightly amused. Apache is dying to make a comment on that as she chuckles inwardly.

"That doesn't mean anything..." Beast Boy grumbles.

"Whatever you say, man."

So apparently at the park dogs are supposed to be on a leash at all times. Hopefully this day wouldn't get any worse for Apache.

Cyborg had to carry the little portable barbecue and food, Star carried the blankets, Robin carried five fishing poles and a tackle box, and Beast Boy phased into a dog to run around, so that left Raven with the task of keeping hold of Apache's black leash. Not that she minded anyway.

Apache was surprised at how quickly she was becoming Raven's dog. At this point, she sort of didn't care that she was a dog.

Then she looks over at the fishing poles in Robin's grasp and immediately begins to resent it again. It had been years since she's been fishing, and she would jump at the opportunity to go again.

Shes torn between the awe that has lasted the entire time by being in the DC universe, and the growing resentment at being a dog. She regrets all the times she looked at dogs and thought how awesome it would be to be one.

She walks half heartedly at Raven's side as the Titans set up camp under a few shady trees by the pond they would be fishing in, the rotten smell of stagnant water thick in the air. A sign reads in big bold red letters, ''CATCH AND RELEASE ONLY. NO SWIMMING.'

Mallard ducks swim idly out in the center of the pond, diving and wagging their fluffy little tails. Apache watches them intently.

"Anyone up for some football after I get these coals going?" Cyborg asks happily.

"You know it!" Beast Boy says, still a dog, which disturbs Apache.

"I would like to play the game of football!" Star says happily as she smooths a large blanket over the plush grass.

"I'm gonna see if the fish are biting first. If not I'll play." Robin smiles as he sets all the poles but one down. Theyre all Ugly Stiks, Apache notices. "Want to try fishing, Raven? It's fun, especially when they're biting."

"I'll give it a try." Raven says after a moment. Apache's tail is again a feather duster.

Beast Boy comes bouncing and barking around Apache, going down in a play bow. Apache lowers her ears at him and her tail stills, not in the mood. He bounces up at her again and bops her shoulder. Before she even means to or can think about it, she growls out gutturally with a few clipped snarled barks, pinning the green mutt under her. Shes choked as the leash is yanked as hard as Raven can yank it, pulling her away from a stunned Beast Boy. Her throat burns, and she coughs out.

As ashamed as she is, she feels anger rise in the pit of her stomach. Shes getting so tired of this.

"Are you okay?" Raven and Robin say in unison.

Beast Boy morphs back into himself. "Y-yeah. I shouldve listened to her it wasnt her fault." Beast Boy defends her when he sees the glares on the twos faces directed at the black dog. "Shes not in a good mood right now, I can tell."

"That doesn't excuse what just happened." Robin says in his leaderly tone, glaring at he ebony dog. Her eyes harden at him in challenge.

"Hey, she didn't bite me, she was just telling me to knock it off, that's not that bad. She just doesn't want to be messed with right now." Beast Boy reasons.

"If you say so." Robin pinches the bridge of his nose with a sigh as Beast Boy moves to help Cyborg. Robin sets himself and Raven up poles with greenish red speckled worms on the hooks, something about the preticular worms never failing in this pond. Of course theyre the notorious Gulp! brand. Apache is far from surprised as she sits at Raven's feet, staring out at the ducks. A few canadian geese had joined them.

After going over the basics of fishing, how to work the pole and casting the pole the first time for Raven, Robin steps a few feet away and casts his own pole into the murky water.

Raven will be an amazing fisherman, Apache thinks. She has the right amount of patients for it, anyway. Raven sits next to Apache, paying the dog, or anything really, little mind. She wasn't holding the leash anymore. She cranks and flicks the pole like Robin had shown her absentmindedly.

Apache only turns to Robin when she hears the wack of a pole. She lowers her ears when he groans. He missed it. He rapidly reels his pole in, pulling his half gone bait out of the water. He fixes the worm and casts out again.

Apache rolls her eyes, setting her head on her paws.

She turns her attention to Raven, who had ceased reeling the bait in all together. She seems spaced. Apache turns her attention back to the ducks. When she gazes around to check on everyone, she notices Raven't pole tip visibly bent.

She jumps up with a clipped bark.

"Raven, your pole! Set the hook!" Robin gushes after seeing what Apache had barked at.

"What? Oh!" Raven jumps up and whacks her pole to the side, and the fight is on. How had she really not noticed it? The fish would have pulled the pole from her hand if her grip had been slack.

The fish pulls and yanks on the pole, and when it jumps out of the water, Apache gets extremely excited, seeing that it's not a small one by any means. Her heart is beating a mile a minute in excitment, and shes shaking happily. She yips in excitement, her tail going a mile a minute. She gives an elated little hop.

"Slow down or the line will snap!" Robin rushes over. The drag is pulling out, and Raven is reeling the fish in almost just as fast. Too much resistance. Without the drag loose the line would snap if the fish is too big. Raven's extra strength is helping her reel the fish in steadily when a regular person her size would have some difficulty. She has a look of concentration on her face and a wide steady stance. She is having a little trouble. It takes about ten minutes to coax the fish to the shore, and by that time it's tired itself out. All Apache could do is pace the bank, yipping excitedly as her tail works overtime.

"Woah," Robin smiles widely as he leans down to take a look at the fish at the edge of the pond. "Do you want to take the hook out or do you want me to do it?" Robin looks up at a slightly shocked but grinning Raven. Apache inspects the fish for herself, elated. She shifts her gaze to an excited looking Raven.

"You do it, I don't know how.'

"It's easy." Robin grins as he puts his hands in the water, picking up the fish by its mouth. "Wow, I'd say it's at least twelve pounds. Thats one big fish." Robin digs in the bass's mouth and with a little difficulty pulls the hook from the roof of it's mouth as it wriggles in a vain attempt to get away. "Want a picture with your legendary catch? It's your first fish after all."

"Oh, um, sure." Raven holds the fish in front of her chest, smiling awkwardly, the fish at least six inches past Raven on either side, as Robin snaps a few pictures, Apache at Raven's side wagging her tail happily. Immediately after Raven gently lowers the fish back into the water, and watched happily as it kicks away from her and back into the murky depths of the large pond. She quickly scrubs her hands in the water before standing back up.

"So, fun, right?" Robin chuckles.

"Yeah." Raven smiles as they pick their poles back up. They go back to fishing, it now becoming a competition of who could catch the most since Raven's fish would most likely be the biggest catch of the day by far.

"Apache," Apache hears. She flicks her ear, turning around to find the source. "C'mere," Its Beast Boy. He glances over his shoulder. Apache fallows his gaze, finding two very pretty girls, one Asian looking, the other African American. They're seated at a table, books scattered around its surface. An aprehensive feeling blooms in her belly.

Did she want to be used for him to look stupid trying to get a date?

No, no she doesn't.

Would she attempt to help him out anyway?

Yes, yes she would.

She hops up, trotting toward the over excited changeling. He picks up an orange bag, rummaging around in it until he pulls out a blue frizbee. "This is to hoping you know how to play frizbee," he points at her with the plastic disc. He picks up the end of her leash, striding to position them a mere fifteen feet from the girls. They have their noses in their books, colored pencils and pens scattered around the table.

Beast Boy clears his throat as he unlatches her leash. Apache sits infront of him, staring up at him.

He waves the frizbee in front of her face, throwing it suddenly, angled to fly near the girls. She watches the frizbee until it lands before staring back up at him. She wishes she could physically bust out laughing at his reaction.

"Well? Go get it!" He very animatedly motions to the frizbee that had landed around eight feet from the girl's table. She just tilts her head at him dumbly. He scoffs.

"You can do every damn trick in the book but you won't fetch a frizbee?" he sounds exasperated. She yips at him, rising to trot over to the frizbee with her tail high, sweeping the air. She paws at the frizbee, taking the edge delicately in her mouth when she gets it between her paws. She eyes Beast Boy before turning to the girls.

She delicately lays her head on the African American girl's lap, startling the girl.

"Oh!" she spies the dog. "Hello, gorgeous. Are you lost?" She rubs at the dog's head. Apache loves the girl's gorgeous afro, her hair in small delicate ringlets framing her face and head in a chocolate halo. Her bright amber colored eyes are friendly and open. Her smile is gorgeous and kind. Her dark washed jeans and jean jacket compliment her healthy form perfectly. "Look at those beautiful eyes!"

"Where'd it come from?" Apache swoons at the Asian girl's accent. She feels scratching on her lower back. Her tail picks up its speed. She could really get used to these girls. She glances over to see an adorable face swathed in an even more adorable shaggy black bob, kind dark brown eyes just as kind as her counterpart.

"I didn't see," she lifts her eyes, glancing around, until they fall on Beast Boy, who is quickly jogging over to the trio.

"I-I'm so sorry she bothered you ladies," Beast Boy appologizes immediately, looking mortified.

"Oh it's no trouble at all, she's a cutie," the African American girl smiles, rubbing the sides of Apache's face. She looks up at Beast Boy, her eyes lighting up farther. "Hey, aren't you one of the Titans?" Apache inwardly chuckles. If any of the Titans could be pointed out in a crowd, it was Beast Boy.

"Ooh! You are, aren't you?" the Asian girl looks up from her book at her friend's words.

Beast Boy instantly becomes embarrased, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Uh, y-yeah..."

"That's so cool! I'm Nicole, by the way," The African American girl holds her hand out for a handshake. "Thank you for protecting the city and keeping us safe."

Beast Boy grasps her hand gently. "No big deal, its all in a days work. Its nice to meet you Nicole, and...?" Apache sits, watching as Beast Boy fishes for the other girl's name. She sets her colored pencil down before grasping his hand.

"Yuka. I'm very pleased to meet you," she smiles politely.

"Pleased to meet you as well, Yuka," he smiles.

"Mind if I toss her frizbee for her?" Nicole asks.

"Not at all," Beast Boy grins, elated with Apache. Apache releases the frizbee when Nicole takes a hold of it.

"What's her name?" Nicole asks as she tosses the frizbee. Apache takes off after it in a dead sprint. She isn't quite fast enough to try to catch it in mid air, so she zips over it. It takes a few strides to slow her momentum, then she whips back arount to paw at it, lifting it to pick it up delicately. She strides back to the trio, plotting herself next to Beast Boy, dropping the frizbee at her feet. The girls laugh at her antics.

She lets her toungue loll out, her breath huffing.

"Well, I think the name Apache is just perfect for her," Nicole giggles. Apache tilts her head. "Well, Beast Boy, we're going to be late for my cousins birthday party. So," she rips a piece of paper out of her notebook, picking up a purple marker to jot something down. She holds the paper out to Beast Boy. "Maybe text me later?"

Beast Boy looks floored. Apache stares up him happily. "Oh, um, yeah! Yeah, sure!" He takes the paper from her grasp. Both girls giggle, packing their books back into their bags. "You guys have a great day!"

"You too!" Nicole and Yuka call in unison as they stand. The four all turn to go their respective ways.

Beast Boy and Apache stride back towars the Titan's claimed area, a hop in both of their steps.

"So, I seen," Cyborg grins, leaning against a tree. "Nice," Cyborg holds his hand up for a high five. Beast Boy happily slaps his hand to Cyborg's metalic one.

"Hey, its all thanks to my wingman," Beast Boy motions to Apache, a grin from ear to ear.

"Wanna set me up, Apache?" Cyborg chuckles. Apache barks a few times, then whips around, sprinting back to Raven's side. Raven glances down at her with a smile, giving her head a quick pat. Apache lays down, her eyes again finding the ducks.

The food had not been put on for too long and the other three Titan's game put on hold when Apache spots a leathe and lanky figure not too far away under a willow tree, sitting on a gnarled root holding her own pole. The stripped leggings look familiar to Apache. The figure is wearing a hoodie with the hood up, obscuring her face and hiding her hair.

Apache observes the figure, tilting her head this way and that. She watches as the figure casts their pole multiple times. Her curiosity and excitmement is getting the best of her.

Apache looks up at her two fishing companions, Raven is lightly teasing Robin over his little half pound fish he just reeled in as she flicks her pole.

She quickly makes up her mind and slinks off quickly toward the willow. She wants to see if she's right or not, excitement and adrenaline pumping through her veins.

After sneaking around a few trees and through some tall grass, she comes up on the opposite side and behind the willow. She steps over a large base root, her nails scratching against the bark. The figure whips around, a startled look in her rose quartz cat like eyes.

The meta and dog stare each other down for a few tense moments.

"Hello there," the girl begins, a tuft of pink tourmaline hair sticking out of the side of her hood. Apache dares to slip her head under the girls arm, to which she giggles a musical laugh. Apache is overwhelmed by a pleasant spicey smell, sweet, sugary but also bitter. It reminds her of pumpkin spice and french vanilla coffee. She pets Apache almost fondly. "Come to visit little ol' me? Not that I'm complaining," Jinx smiles widely as she remembers to flick her pole and Apache hears the distinctive _plop_ of a top-water lure. "It gets lonely fishing all alone." Jinx confides. She keeps an arm looped around Apache's shoulders as she fishes, absently rubbing up and down her side.

Apache almost can't sit still.

She was right!

She's elated. Her tail is dusting the bark of the tree's roots.

After a few more casts Apache hears her name along with a loud whistle. She perks up, and Jinx hears it too. Apache considers not listening and staying with Jinx. She glances up at the pale girl.

"Is that you?" Jinx asks. "Go on, don't go getting in trouble," Jinx says, disappointed. "I feel like stealing you, but Gizmo would throw a huge fit." She grumbles. She removes her arm from around Apache. Apache misses the weight and warmth immediately. That actually didn't sound like too bad an idea. It might just be her bad temper at the moment though.

Apache hears her name again.

She quickly licks Jinx's cheek a few times against her better judgment, causing the girl to giggle, before bounding back the way she came. Her irritation grows more and more the closer she gets to the Titans. They see her coming and greet her with 'Where'd you go's and amusment.

Obviously it's time to eat.

Beast Boy flips her a barbecued hot dog, which she scarfs down greatfully.

 **Apache aiding Beast Boy in his attempts to snag a date is life.**


	6. Discovery

Whoop! We're half way there! This is now easily one of my favorite chapters so far. I also combined chapters 6 and 7 so this is the result. The improvments are huge in this chapter, and I'm so proud. I wasn't joking when I said this chapter had been short amd sucky the first time. Enjoy!

... ... ... ... ...

Apache cocks her head, her ears and eyes alert. It had been an uneventful month and a half since they had went to the park. She had caught on that is was now sometime around mid February, and the weather proved it. It had rained off and on, and was overcast with dark clouds half the time. The Titans had been working overtime the last few weeks, dealing with Dr. Light, the H.I.V.E., Cinderblock, the sludge monster she couldn't remember the name of that was basically a DC version of the Hulk to her, and every other Meta that decided to make a negative scene in the city. They even had to attend every criminal that they capture's preliminary and sentancing court hearings! Those she never got to attend those and the Titans never said much about them, so she only really knew that was where they went.

There was something she felt she was missing in preticular about the beginning of this month, but she couldn't pin point it. It was something she knew was supposed to be important, if not to anyone else then to her, but she couldn't remember so she ended up dropping it.

Most of the last month she had been glued to Raven's hip whenever absolutely possible. She rarely strayed, unless Raven needed a shower or simply wanted to be completely alone. Apache found Raven frequents that little coffee shop around once a week. Raven had thus far taken Apache with her every time, and Apache loves it. Val would always slip her a donut, and it was always quiet there.

Cyborg on occassion would track Apache down and have her hang around him for a few hours. Their activities ranged from working on the car, chilling and watching TV or him playing video games, which would often involve Beast Boy, and even when he needed to make a pit stop in town and he didn't want to go by himself. Apache could tell he enjoyed her presence, and she enjoyed his likewise. He thought her a clever dog that perhaps had some service training due to her level of understanding and cleverness. She could retrieve him tools, the remote and various other things. Of course he, and every other Titan, still had no clue about her and she still had no way to inform them of the situation.

The Titan's last two days had been occupied by court hearings, but this morning, as Raven had kicked Apache out of the bathroom so she could shower, Apache found that Cyborg and Beast Boy had had enough of the courtroom, and were ready to burn off some steam.

Its nine in the morning and they're sprinting down the hallway pelting wads of rotten smelling laudry at eachother.

She ducks back in the perpendicular hallway and watches wide eyed as they speed past, screaming and laughing, Cyborg's foot falls thundering throughout the hallways.

She yelps, giving a jump when a foul smelling pair of underwear smacks her in the face.

She gags at the smell, pawing at her nose and giving a three leged hop away from the olfactory insult that is that nasty pair of underwear.

Giving her head a shake, she trots down the hall after the two heathens.

Fallowing the smell of rotten laudry, she weaves through the maze of halls, finding herself doubling around until the smell leads her to the common room.

The door swishes open and she inches through. The room appears empty. She gazes around as the door swishes shut behind her.

She's startled at a battle cry as Beast Boy jumps over the back of the couch, charging over toward the kitchen before catapulting over the bar to shove a nasty ball of laundry in Cyborg's face. Cyborg seen it coming, and easily grabs his wrist, forcing Beast Boy to shove the ball in his own face.

"Hey! Illegal move!" Beast Boy gags, hitting the linolium of the kitchen floor.

"It's completely legal, grass stain," Cyborg grins, a ball of laundry in his hand.

"It is not! Check the rule book!" Beast Boy has a blasphemous tone. Apache sits, tilting her head as she gazes at the two teens. This is it? This is Stank Ball?

Its highly amusing.

She wants Raven's referee cloak and to referee for them. She flicks her ear in amusment, a bi colored gaze shinning with mirth.

"We don't have a rule book," Cyborg cackles.

"WHAT?! You said you were going to write it!" Beast Boy gripes, moving very animatedly.

"I am! I just haven't got around to it," Cyborg grins from ear to ear. They're silenced when a communicator goes off with a chime. "Ooooooooooohh, its your giiirrlfrieeeeend," Cyborg drawls out in a teasing tone.

"Oh, shut up," Beast Boy's face flushes as he pulls his communicator from his belt, flipping it open. His face instantly lights up. "Nicole wants to go out for pizza tonight."

"Nice. What're ya gonna say?"

"Is that even a question? Hell yeah!" Beast Boy stands on his toes, before sitting back on his feet as he types away.

Apache inwardly laughs, pulling herself up to meander over to the two boys, her tail dusting the air.

"He-hey, Apache! When'd you get in here?" Cyborg greets before roughly rubbing her head. "If only you could referee for us, eh?"

"Dude Apache would probably make the best referee."

"Of course she would," Cyborg chuckles. Apache just wags her tail, leaning against Cyborg's robotic leg. "Hey, ya up for a video game before I head to town?"

"When aren't I?"

Apache leasurly fallows them to the TV, hopping up on the couch to watch as they set up a game of Black Ops on the play station.

She loves to watch them play. Its amusing in and of itself how into it and animated they get. It even gets so far as them grabbing the controllers from one another and throwing them across the room. The shrill screaming she could do without, but other than that, its the greatest past time.

They wrap the game up in about an hour before saving it and turning it off. It faintly occurs to Apache that Raven had most likely been done with her shower long ago, but she pushes that nagging thought down in favor of hanging with Cyborg for a little while. Raven would be just fine without her for awhile. Besides, she enjoys the car rides when its just her and Cyborg.

They split ways with Beast Boy in the hall, Cyborg turning down the flight of stairs to the elevator.

"You comin with me today, little mama?" Cyborg grins when he hears the click of her nails fallowing him down the stairs. "I could use the company."

She fallows him into the elevator, sitting at his feet as the doors slide shut. She yawns as the elevator decends, all the way to the garage level. They step off of the carpet of the elevator and onto the dull concrete of the garage. Apache's nails click as she fallows the robotic man.

He opens the passanger side door of the T-Car, giving a little bow to her. "After you, m'lady."

She hops up into the passenger seat, watching her tail as Cyborg closes the door. Her bi colored gaze fallows him as he walks around the car to reach the driver's side. He climbs in, starts the car, and they're off.

The steel door lifts to reveal the access tunnel; they're shrouded in darkness as they enter the inky blackness. Apache watches as Cyborg flips a switch next to the rear view mirror, causing ghostly blue lights to ignight on the edges of the bottom of the tunnel, just enough to drive safely.

Cyborg flicks the radio on at a comfortable level. A rock station, as per usual. Apache is a fan. She'd be happy with alternative and R&B as well but thats beside the point. She flicks her ears at the familiar cocophony of The Pretty Reckless, giving her tail a small wag.

"Now Apache, don't let me forget to pick up some extra screws and washers, I forgot to put those on the list," Cyborg confides in all seriousness. Apache glances at him, her ears perked and a doggy smile upon her lips before she glances back to the dark path.

Cyborg is going anything but slow. Its hard to tell with the overly smooth surface they're driving on mixed with the inclosed tunnel, but a quick glance at the speedometer proves they're going close to fifty miles an hour. What had taken Apache almost five hours to swim, takes them a twenty minute drive.

They sit in a comfortable silence until they reach a lit up platform large enough to fit the car. The car slows to a stop. Cyborg flips another switch.

A trap door slides open overhead, the car beginning to ascend upward. The trapdoor leads to an alley. Tall buildings surround them on two sides.

When Cyborg drives off the platform and into traffic, the opening is once again hidden, no one would be able to tell it was ever there.

Apache thinks it buisy for a Friday at ten o'clock in the morning as they turn out into rushing traffic, but reminds herself it is Jump after all. Its not as bad as San Francisco's traffic, so that was of course something.

She stares out the window as they stop and go, watching the city go by and watching the passing people. They pull into a full parking lot, a chain of eight various stores running the length of the large block. Their destination sits on the far right of the lot. Its a very small hole in the wall electronic and hardware shop, Cyborg's favorite place to frequent.

If there was ever anything Cyborg needed that they didn't have, they would rush order it for him with no charge. Apache always thought that was nifty. They were actually doing very decent for a small private owned shop.

Cyborg finds a parking space a few rows away from the shop, between a beaten up Honda and dull colored mini van. Cyborg squeezes out of his door after switching the car off, careful to not scrape against or hit the rusty silver Honda with his car door. "C'mon, Apache," Apache hops over the center console and out the door, clearing the way for him to shut and lock the door before shimmying out into the lane. Apache looks both ways as Cyborg does before they both move toward their destination, Apache having to trot to keep up with Cyborg's long strides.

She looks up at him, wondering if he'd ever wanted to be a football or basketball player. He has the build of a football player no doubt. She thinks this is the better career path.

With her tail sweeping, she darts across the road after glancing both ways and hops up on the cement under the overhang of the store, turning around to balance on her hind legs infront of Cyborg, pawing the air at him. He laughs, gently pushing her down before rubbing her head fondly.

They finally reach the door, and Cyborg turns to her.

"Apache, sit," she sits just as she's done every time before. "Stay," She tilts her head after he rubs the back of her neck before turning to enter the store.

She watches him through the glass window, plucking items off the shevles before moving to the front counter. There are only a few people milling around inside. He talks to the older man at the counter for a moment. The man types something into his computer before going into the back.

With a huff, Apache turns her attention to the group of teenagers rounding the corner, laughing and talking loudly to one another. Three girls and two boys. She tilts her head, an ear falling back.

"Oh!" a chubby yet pretty blond headed girl gasps as she spots her. Apache's other ear falls back. "Look! Isn't that that dog that the Titan's picket up?" Her four companions turn their attention to Apache.

"Woah, it looks like it," a dark haired and skinned boy says as he pulls his phone from his pocket, tapping away at the screen.

"Ooh, I wonder if the original owner ever got her or if Robin is around here somehwere," the other blond haired girl says. Apache can tell her hair is bleached blond due to the light brown roots showing through. She becomes confused at the Robin comment. Of course he has fans, she realizes. And many would gladly drop their panties for him.

She shudders at the thought.

"Oh, Robin Robin Robin. Give it a rest Gizelle, you've went on and on about him for how long? Its never gonna happen," The other boy, this one sandy haired with irritable brown eyes, gripes at her.

"I don't give a damn. Robin is smokin, I wish I could have a chance at him," She says airily, brushing him off.

"Dude, same," the third girl, who is Latina looking, drapes her arm over the bleached blond girl's shoulders, her being taller.

"Look at this guys! It is the same dog!" the first boy exclaims, turning the screen of his phone to face his four counterparts. They all huddle around to compare.

Apache is becoming extremely uncomfortable. She shifts in her spot, wishing Cyborg would hurry.

"Same eyes 'n everything," the other boy compares, glancing back at her.

"Dude!" the bleached blond girl is excited. She pulls her phone from her pocket, practically flinging in into the Latina girl's grasp. "Yesi, take a picture for my Instagram!"

"Uh, ookay, but if the dog bites you, thats your fault," the girl drawls in a light Spanish accent, angling the phone as the girl kneels down next to Apache, draping her arm over Apache's back. Apache's heart rate kickes up, along with her fight or flight reflex. She realpy fucking wish Cyborg would hurry.

"Smile," The Latina girl says.

"Wait, its ears should be up, so it doesnt look so scared, ya feel me?" the blond says. Apache can feel the irritation bubbling in her belly. The blond begins whistling in a high pitch tone. She recognizes the attempt, as she'd whistled in a similar manner at her own dog for pictures when her dog refused to raise its ears.

She decides to give them what they want to hopefully speed this process along and shoves her ears forward. There is instantly a flash from the phone, signaling the capture of a picture.

"Lemme see!" the bleach blond girl jumps up and rips the phone from her friends grasp.

"Calm down," the Latina girl rolls her eyes.

"Oh! It looks great, dude! Thanks!" She types away at the screen of her phone.

"Lets go, my dudes, I'm hungry," the first boy says, slipping his phone back in his pocket.

"You're always hungry," the other boy rolls his eyes. Apache gives a sigh of relief as they walk past her. She looks back through the window to see Cyborg striding toward the glass door, a box and plastic bag in his arms. He pushes the door open gently with his shoulder, staring after the group of kids with a raised brow.

Apache stares up at him in relief. He looks down to meet her eyes. He kneels down infront of her.

"You alright?" he asks. "You're such a good girl," he sets his bags down to rub at the sides of her face. She hops up, bopping her nose to his and giving his cheek a lick before landing back on all fours. He laughs, rubbing at her fondly as her tail goes a mile a minute. He rises, picking his bags back up. "C'mon little mama," Cyborg watches for cars as he strides back to where they had parked with Apache not a step behind, the blue detailing of the car standing out in the parking lot.

He puts the bags in the back seat before opening the driver's side door, this task being easy as the Honda is no longer there. "In ya go," He says to Apache. She jumps in and over the center console to rest in the passengers seat once more. She watches as Cyborg gets in, turning the car on. They pull out of the parking lot, their arrand complete.

Apache leans against the seat, gazing out at the traffic ahead of them. It had thinned out slightly. It wouldn't stay like that for long. Its almost time for the lunch rush.

Apache flicks her ears at the sound of the Goo Goo Dolls playing on the radio. One of her favorite bands. Its Slide thats playing, one of her favorite songs. She sighs, feeling nostalgic for what feels like no reason.

She again people watches as they make their way back toawrd the access tunnel to go back to the island. Since the first time she'd went with them through the access tunnel she'd always wondered if it went beneath the ocean floor or if it was a pipeline type thing through the ocean itself. She was betting on it going through the ocean. She didn't think any people would really see it. California waters are far from the best place to dive. The water is cold and and the fish are boring. Its just a wonder to her how they built it.

A twenty minute car ride later, Apache is stretching herself out in the Titan's garage. She gives a shake, looking up at Cyborg as he deposits his goods on his work bench. She gives a bark, catching his attention.

"Gonna head back to Raven?" he asks, a gentle smile on his lips. She gives another yip. He strides a few steps over to her, giving her head a rough pet. She gives his hand a lick before bolting up the stairs that lay parallel to the elevator. "Say hello to her for me," he calls after her with a laugh.

After a few flight, she slows down to a brisk trot, her breath heaving. By the time she's half way there, on the floor the gym resides on, she can't run anymore.

Every.

Time.

She's so out of shape it isn't even funny.

She curses the tower for being so big as she finally reaches the top floor, heading straight for the bedrooms. She huffs, trotting down the hallway until she resides in front of a very familiar door. She scratches at the metal as she pants lightly. It swishes open without missing a beat.

She walks in, her tail sweeping the air as the door shuts behind her. Raven is sitting cross leged on her bed reading a very thick and very old looking book. Apache scans the clean and tidy room, nothing seeming to be out of place.

She calmly walks over to Raven's bed, hopping up on the plush comforter. She lays down, leaning against Raven's exposed thigh. The girl takes no notice of her. She lays her head down, closing her bi colored eyes with a sigh. She's surprised when a nimble hand weaves its way through the longer fur of her ruff, scratching lightly. She gives a content wag if her tail.

Apache is the epitome of irritation.

She has just about as much patience as a jaguar. And its not helping thats she's stalking the length of the huge window in the common room like one. Her hackles are risen, muscles tense and strung. The Titans got a call, and the only thing she's smelt since they left is the smell of singed hair.

Just last night Beast Boy had went on his date, and he'd recounted the tale this morning to the rest of the team. He'd had a great time and had even kissed Nicole for the first time. Everyone congradulated him. Apache congradulated herself for a matchmaking job well done. Then Robin had killed the mood to tell everyone he'd made an appointment for her to get a checkup and be spayed next month on the fifteenth.

Then the alarm rang and its been hell for her ever since.

She's terrified, but is masking it with anger. She's unsure if its the correct way to go, but anything is better than fear, she's sure.

The damned thing hadn't showed itself yet, and Apache has no clue what to do if it does and decides to come after her.

Her muscles are overheated and becoming sore by the time the Titans are back, its been four hours of her rigidly pacing, smelling that smell. It immediately dissapears as soon as the door swishes open. She snarles in irritation, flicking her tail like an irritated cat.

She's too shaken up to be anything other than irritated.

She holds her head low, giving the five teens a death stare, her blue eye blazing against black fur. Theyre worn out and battered, obviously a tough day. Her heart is nevertheless racing from her amount of stress over the last four hours. Shes jittery and uneasy, though she does feel sympathy for the worn out teens.

"Hey, Apache," Beast Boy greets tirdly as he plops on the couch and stretches himself out. "No excited hellos today?" She flattens her ears. This draws the attention of all the Titans. They give her confused looks.

Her eyes fall on Raven, who is scrutinizing her more than she ever has before, her eyebrows furrowing together. Apache growls.

"Hey, whats wrong, little mama?" Cyborg asks with a confused tone, taking a few steps toward her.

Ya'll better step the fuck off me and quit staring at me, she snaps in her head. Raven's eyebrows lift, she looks almost thoughtful, moreso than usual.

Raven floats over to her, and kneels down infront of her, completely unafraid of Apache's foul mood. Apache can only stare with her ears held back, feeling uneasiness rise in her gut.

"Whats gotten into her?" Robin mumbles, watching warrily as he shifts slightly.

"She was fine before we left," Star trails off.

"Azarath, matreon, zinthos," Raven says calmly after placing her right hand over Apache's chest and her left on the center of Apache's head, thumb on the center of her muzzle. Apache is confused, but allows her to do whatever she's doing anyway.

A black light glows brightly. Apache's body is enveloped in a searing pain so bad she can't even gather the breath to yelp.

Four different gasps sound.

A red haired girl with a bi colored gaze stares up at the five of them with watery pain filled eyes, Raven's hands still on her chest and face radiating searing pain into her frail, bruised, clotheless body. A surge of memory causes a scream to bubble in the girl's throat.

Raven herself is so shocked she rips her hands back, and a black dog with a white chest is once again amoung them, shaking fiercly with wide eyes. She slumps forward, all but falling completely over as her memories again fade, leaving no trace, like leaves blown away on a windy day.

Its quiet for a long while. Apache's head is ringing, her body aching.

"Raven...?" Beast Boy nervously calls from where he sits on the couch.

"What... Was that?" Robin asks.

"I don't know," Raven says quietly, her hands over her mouth.

"That was..." Cyborg trails, shock and something else building in his throat.

"What were you trying to do?" Robin asks with a monotone.

"I... She..." Raven takes a deep breath. "Theres been a... Demon i guess you could call it, around and she was so strung... I thought maybe it had messed with her and I was going to take a look at her memories." Raven drawls, almost scared as she gazes down at the slumped over dog, her limbs twisted almost painfully under her.

"Wait, a demon?" Beast Boy asks, becoming terrified.

"You mean from Hell? Like one of your crazy dads lackeys?" Cyborg questions.

"And you didnt say anything why?" Robin's voice is becoming increasingly stern.

Raven whips around to give him a glare. "None of you had said anything about it and I didnt want to worry any of you. There was no point in saying anything, not to mention I took care of it."

"What do you mean 'took care of it'?!" Robin is angry now.

"I mean i set hexes and spells around the tower to keep them out." Ravens voice is dangerous, dripping venom. Something in Apache's fuzzy mind clicks. Maybe... Thats why it smelt different this time? The hexes and spells were working as a repelant?

Star jumps right into the middle of the confrentation. "This is not the point right now. The point is Apache."

"Star's right, guys. We have to figure out what that was and figure out if we're in any danger." Cyborg almost sounds dissapointed. It makes Apache's stomach twist painfully. They gather around her slumped over body, and she feels fear and an overwhealming sickness stir in her belly. She gazes up at Cyborg, wanting to break down in disgusting sobs at his angry and dissapointed face.

"You can understand us just fine, cant you?" Cyborg asks. No shit, Sherlock she gripes, feeling wetness build in her eyes. As if how she acted over the last two months suggested she ever acted like she didnt.

She attempts to lift her heavy head, to no avail. Her body is still searing, her stomach twising painfully as all of her will drains from her body. She whines lightly, her gaze fallokg on Raven, who was still seated infront of her. The five teens exchange glances.

"We're going to ask you some questions. Blink once for no and twice for yes, understand?" Robin says sternly. She blinks twice, eyes still on Raven. Couldn't Raven just read her mind or something? It occurs to her that maybe Robin is forgetting that or he wants to question her himself.

"Youre human?" Two blinks.

"Can you give us a name?" One blink.

"Youre being uncooperative?" One blink.

"You dont remember a name?" Two blinks. They exchange more glances.

"Are you working for someone?" One blink.

"Youre telling the truth?" Two blinks. Four sets of eyes turn to Raven, and she nods.

"Do you know how you became a dog?" One blink.

"Are you from around here?" One blink.

"Did you originally come here for help?" Two blinks, then a third after a slight hesitation. They take it as a yes and no.

"Well, I don't know how to go about this." Robin finally says. "She wasnt lying at any time?" Raven shakes her head.

"I can do some research, see if i can find something in a spell book. We're not going to get the answers we need with yes and no questions." Robin nods in agreement.

"In the meantime, Apache is not to be left unattended. Until the situation has been fully assessed, she will be viewed as a threat. Every night-"

"I'll continue to keep an eye on her at night." Raven interrupts, looking defiantly up at Robin. Apache's heart swells. She feels a few tears escape her eyes. They merely dissapear into her black fur.

"I dont think thats the best idea." Robin is stern again, his arms crossed.

"I promise you, its fine."

"If she is kept contained."

Raven simply nods.

All Apache could do for three hours was lay in that spot, slumped over with her body aching. She couldn't deny that she was scared about what would happen now that the Titans considered her a threat.

All five of them continued to cast her wary glances as the sun set and dinner was cooked and served, which is killing her inside more than she could explain or comprehend. She wanted nothing more than to scream at them, throw a tantrum, call to the heavens until they understood that she was the farthest thing from a threat to them in this universe. She wishes she could explain everything to them, if she even could remember.

A sick feeling settles in her stomach.

Raven casts her a raised eyebrowed glance at that thought. Robin must have told her to probe her mind. Not that she particularly cared. She has nothing to hide. Maybe beside her sexuality and all the cringey moments from her childhood but thats beside the point.

Hey if Raven wants to probe her mind and see how cringey of a person she is, who is she to judge? Then again she should probably force herself to stop thinking incase something weird or innapropriate popped into her head. Its not like Raven was ever going to find any malicious intent, 'cause Apache has none.

Annd there it goes. She should not have mentioned innapropriate to herself.

Eugh, why...

She squeezes her eyes shut trying to banish that distasteful thought and image. She opens one eye to glance at Raven. She lowers her ears at Raven's slightly disturbed look. Great.

Think abiut something else, damnit.

Her eyes lose their glassy stare and her ears perk. Thats right! Her favorite cartoon!

Raven gives Apache a funny look with her eyebrows creased, causing Robin to look at her too as he had noticed Raven's glance. Apache's tail twitches back and forth for a moment, then she loses it and her eyes glaze over again. Right. They'd never let her watch it. And theres no telling if it exists here. Teen Titans Go certainly didn't. That was more of a blessing than a curse if she had any say in it.

Images flit through her mind from her favorite moments, dissapointment bubbling in her belly. She heaves a sigh.

She finally picks herself up and shakes her body out, stretching some of the tension away. She gives the huge flatscreen a longing look, before lowering her head and going straight to lay at Raven's feet. All five had their eyes on her on account of the noise of her shaking.

Her body tenses, her ears flat. She looks up at Raven with a steely look in her bicolored gaze. 'You can hear me, can't you?'

Raven tenses, glancing up at Robin before nodding stiffly. 'Tell Robin I will tell you what I can, I have nothing to hide. And Why can you hear me now but not before?'

"She says she'll tell us what she can." Raven's voice captures everyone's attention. "And I wasn't trying before." Apache nods, skeptical. There has to be so much more to it. Raven just doesn't seem like the type of person to let something like this slide for two months without so much as a hint.

Robin clears his throat. "Why didn't you make it known that you were human?"

'What the fuck did you honestly expect, I'm a fucking dog at the moment.'

Raven crosses her arms and reiterates word for word.

Beast Boy snorts.

"Where did you come from?"

'I wish l knew. All i know is that a I'm from a different universe.'

That really captures their attention.

'What do you mean by 'different universe'?" Raven asks this.

'I mean just that. I'm from a different universe, and I know because you guys and superheroes don't exist there,'

"You've got to be joking," Beast Boy sounds flabbergasted.

'I'm not. I wish there were heroes there, but I live in the most boring universe ever,' Apache sounds sore about that, it doesn't transfer to Raven's voice, however.

"Then did you know we were heroes or did you assume?" Robin perks up slightly.

'Oh no, I knew,' Apache sounds matter of fact.

"How?" Robin gets slightly defensive again.

'Cause Teen Titans was a cartoon I watched when I was little along with Dexter's Laboratory, Yogi Bear and whatever else was on Cartoon Network and Boomerang. The comics came out in the 80s but I never could get my hands on those. You guys have a theme song, isn't that great?'

"Are you being serious right now?" Cyborg quips.

'Dead. I know every one of your full real names, along with many of the things you've been through. Though in the comics, Raven was the one to bring the Titans together. DC was never big on female heroes but Raven is by far the best. Harley Quinn is great too but she's not a hero. Was there an actual Suicide Squad?" Raven hesitates before translating. Apache had by now jumped up on a vacant chair and looks expectantly at Robin, excitedness radiating off her frame, her tail going a mile a minute despite herself.

"What? What do you mean you know our real names?"

'Suicide Squad first, dude. That's your ticket to the information I hold.'

"That is classified information."

'You're tight with Batman, i know you know.'

"Fine, yes. Now how do you know our names?"

'Did you know you were supposedly killed by the Joker and Harley Quinn in the Suicide Squad movie?'

"What? No, that's not the point, answer my question."

'Any fan in my universe knows them or they're not a fan, its as simple as that. Theres a huge list of DC and Marvel heroes and villains.'

"We have Marvel, but what's DC?" Beast Boy interrupts, ever the one to be interested in that type of thing.

'DC competes heavily with Marvel in my universe. DC is known for Batman, Superman, the Justice League. Its basically this universe. I personally prefer Marvel myself. Marvel is just more practical than DC when it comes to superheroes in my opinion. And movies.'

"Thanks a lot dude. Good to know you're on the opposing team if what you say is the truth." Beast Boy sounds mildly offended. Apache puts her paws up on the bar and barks.

'Just because i think the Avengers are great does't mean i don't support you!'

"This can't be possible." Cyborg mumbles, his arms crossed.

"I do not understand. How can we be "comic book and cartoon" characters?" Star asks. Apache looks to her. She'd been quietly taking in all of the information being filtered through the room. Star is anything but stupid. She's actually down right clever. She's just still being immersed in Earth culture. Its hard enough for someone in one country to go to another with a vastly different culture, let alone a totally differeny planet.

"Guys, there is such a thing as alternate dimentions. Azarath is an alternate dimention." Raven says.

"So you think there's truth to this?" Robin inquires, sounding skeptical.

"Yes, but I'm not sure how her getting turned into a dog happned. This is where my spellbooks are going to come in. I need to find a memory spell and a transformation spell." She turns to the dog. "How much do you remember?"

'Basically nothing. The only thing i remembered when i got here was things about DC and Marvel. Things got triggered as the weeks went by but not much.'

"It must be hard not being able to remeber anything," Star consoles.

'Eh, its irritating but i certainly don't miss it. What is there to miss when you don't know what youre supposed to be missing.'

"You really can't remember your name?" Robin asks.

The dog shakes her head.

"Are you even okay with Apache?" Beast Boy asks. Robin gives him a dissbelieving look. Of everything going on right now that is the least of everyone's worries.

'More than okay with it. Its that or...' An idea pops into her head. 'Jasper.'

"Jasper...?" He grumbles.

'But whats important now is figuring out what time frame I'm in.'

"What do you mean?" Cyborg eyes her.

The dog hesitates, looking down at her paws. 'Has Slade came to give Raven the 'mark' yet?'

Raven stalls, her eyes wide. She's quite for a few moments.

"Yes," She grumbles as she puts her hood over her head, shielding her face.

"What is it?" Star asks.

'Are you eighteen yet, Raven?'

"No," Raven answers, stiffly.

"What's she sayin'?" Beast Boy asks.

'Slade will be back with Trigon. And I think I might know why I'm here.'

"We figured he'd be back."

"Raven." Robin uses his leaderly tone. Raven reiterates the information with distatse.

'I don't understand why I'm here when you all handled the Birthmark and The End episodes just fine...' Apache hops down from the chair and begins pacing, her shoulders and hips audibly popping and sore as she went. Man, she could really use a Tylenol or something.

The five Titans converse amoungst themselves.

"I'm skeptical of this entire story." Robin confides. "Comic book and cartoon characters?"

"I admit, it does sound very far out there." Cyborg contemplates.

"You can not rule out that she is telling the truth." Star, ever the one to give the benefit of the doubt. Apache feels gratitude toward the Tamaranian. She promises herself that she will let Star do whatever to her makeover wise for a day.

"Star, people lie. This has some kind of scheme written all over it." Robin grumbles. Apache bristles at his words. Granted Robin has reason to be suspicious, but he needs to be a little more forgiving.

Her fire dies at that. Terra destroyed any chance of that for her. She's going to have to work double time to earn their trust and prove she won't be trading sides any time soon. She has to admit she'd be the same way in his situtation.

"But at the same time is she not a dog?"

"We'll figure it out. We always do. Weather it works itself out or not." Raven. Apache's heart swells again. She's getting unbelievably attatched to Raven.

"I think we just need to throw her in containment and leave here there." Apache stops abruptly with a growl, glaring daggers at Robin. The attention turns back to her.

'I didn't ask to come here that I know of! I believe whole heartedly that everything happens for a reason. If you all choose to not believe me, thats fine, but i can't stand liers, thieves, or anything of the sort. I have a very good sense of right and wrong and if I'm here to help, thats damn well what I'm going to do. Its up to you to have faith in me and accept the help I'm willing to give. I've already helped with Control Freak. If i had ill intentions, they would have already been played out. Im telling you, I havent lied, and i havent hidden anything. I want nothing other than to help." Raven half heartedly relays the message.

"You have one chance, Apache. If you blow it, thats it." Robin warns.

'Thats fine, I'll take whatever i can get. But you're going to have to let me do my thing at the same time so I can play my part to the best of my ability. Even if its to an extent. A middle ground.'

"A middle ground to an extent." The Boy Wonder and Pit Bull cross nod at eachother in agreement.

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Cyborg bonding time. Their relationship later in the story has some importance, so its needed. Plus Cy is badass. Next chapter shoukd be updated soon.


	7. Suspicion

Guess what 800 word chapter now has 7200 words? This chapter. Enjoy! Its got some plot in it and some hints. Things to think about~

A WARNING for this chapter, there is some nudity, but it doesnt go past that. There is no sexual themes that I kmow of.

... ... ... ... ...

Apache fallows Raven as she's done many times before out of the common room and to her room, the girl ahead of her as silent as a wraith as she floats down the hall. Its nothing new, but Apache's skin still crawls with guilt and uncomfortableness as she gazes at the girl's back, the silence causing her ears to ring. And it isn't even her fault! She doesn't even snicker at Raven's added height as she usually does. Her stomach is sick, and she feels as if she doesn't belong in her own skin. Which technically, she doesn't, but still!

As they turn down the hall to the bedrooms, Apache can't help it anymore. She projects at Raven. She doesn't know if it will work, but its worth a shot, right? She doesn't even know how it works. What does she do, yell at Raven with her mind? Imagine she's talking to Raven? Apache sighs.

'I'm sorry, Raven,' Apache sounds guilty, uneasy, twitchy. There is no hop to her step as there usually is, her tail limp. Her ears are drooped back, guilt and uneasiness weighing her down despite her doing nothing wrong.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Raven halts, turning to her. "Unless you had something planned. If you did or do, its best to tell me now," Raven gives her a scrutinizing look. Apache cowers slightly at it. Raven had never looked at her like that before.

'I can promise you on my life that I never had any malicious intent. I didn't lie or try to keep anything from you,' Apache sounds weak, unconvincing to even herself. She doesn't understand this feeling. She didn't do anything wrong!

"If you did nothing wrong you need to quit feeling and acting so guilty, it doesn't make your case very convincing," Raven still has her hood up, obscuring any stray emotion.

'I-I know. Just, the way you all looked at me, like I was the enemy. I'm not! I understand that,' Apache stalls as Terra flits through her mind. She's already on thin ice, she wouldn't dare go near possibly toutchy subjects. 'you guys have to be careful and its justified for you guys to be overly cautious. Its too much for me to ask that you all give me the benefit of the doubt, I understand that. It just hurts, I guess," Apache's eyes fall.

"You're right, we can't afford to give you the benefit of the doubt. That doesn't mean at the same time that you won't be able to earn the trust you want," Apache's eyes snap up to Raven, the girl lowering her hood, causing her blood red chakra gen to glint in the light of the hall. Her amethyst eyes are hard yet have a certain undertone of kindness to them that wouldn't have been noticed by anyone that didn't know her well. "It may take time, but you'll get there. As long as you're telling the truth."

'I am, I can promise you right now. I'll make sure those looks of dissapointment get wiped right off all your faces,' Guilt is replaced by a fiery determination. She stands tall, her ears forward, bi colors meeting amethyst.

"I'm looking forward to it," Raven's lips quirk upward the tiniest bit. "Now, lets go find those spells," Raven turns back around, floating the rest of the way to her room, Apache right on her cloak's tail. Apache feels blessed. She'd never seen Raven so expressive when she was around people. She's so much more expressive when she's alone, and even with her. Of course Raven had thought she was a normal dog, and animals have a way of worming themselves under people's skin. You could use a dog or cat as a living diary and no one would ever hear or see tail of it again.

Using a dog or cat for a diary is the best and safest method out there to her. Animals will listen, then you never have to worry about someone getting ahold of the information later. You could vent, scream, curse, just about anything and an animal could always lend their ear then be there to hug after if you needed it.

She trails after Raven until the door slides shut behind her, then she promptly sits, her eyes fallowing the wraith like figure. The girl gazes up and down her book shelf that takes up the entirety of her wall that is opposite the windows, books flying off the dust free shelves to pile themselves in the center of the room.

'How do you keep this room so clean?' Apache projects at the dark girl as she gazes around the spacious room. She'd never once recalled Raven actually cleaning it.

"Magic," she says in all seriousness. Apache inwardly snorts.

'Sure,' she drawls teasingly. She feels a sense of awkwardness come over her. After a few moments of silence, she tentively asks whats been on her mind. 'Why do you seem so much more comfortable around me? Especially now. I mean, even Cyborg isn't too keen with me anymore,' Apache deflates, remembering Cyborg's look of dissapointment.

Raven pauses for a moment, before continuing to pull books off the shevles as she deems them worthy. "You're just different, I supoose," Raven picks up on her confusion, so she attempts to clarify. "As a dog, I was able to see you differently. It was easier to be around you. It didn't feel like I was being judged for every little action, and that kept me at ease. When I'm at ease, I can channel my emotions slightly and keep them in check. And now, I don't really see you as an actual person, if that makes sense."

Apache perks. 'So when you're uncomfortable you have to completely block your emotions?'

'Well, yes and no, but thats the simplest explanation," One last book flies off the shelf, Raven turning to fallow it. She seats herself in the center of the various stacks, her cloak billowed around her. Apache pushes herself up, walking over to her leasurly before laying down about a foot infront of Raven in between two perilously tall stacks of books. She gazes around at the various stacks curiously, contemplating.

'So, how is it you can hear me now but not before? And don't give me that "I wasn't trying" crap, I know better," Apache gazes at her curiously, her head tilted the slightest bit. Raven glances at her as three books hover around herself, pages flipping.

"Well, there was some type of spell on you. Your aura and mind read as if you truly were a dog, to me at least. By me connecting my mind to yours to try to look at your memories, the spell lifted," Raven's eyes scan page after page as she flips through them at inhuman speed. Apache is quiet, contemplating the information. A spell? What deity thought to put a spell on her? At this point, she isn't going to even question it and just let it be. She feels it isn't her place to question such things at the moment. Whatever big plan she was now a part of might have to play out before she'll know, if she'll ever know. She feels she has a right to know, after all, she's the one that got transported through dimentions to be here, but it isn't the right time to be asking questions. Her gaze falls on Raven again.

'I'm so glad I can finally talk to you, and y'know, I don't know how I got here, but I'm honored nonetheless that you feel confortable around me. I feel very blessed about that. And I want you to know that I won't ever judge you or try to go against you in any way. I'm here to help, so I'm here if you need me,' Apache gives her a scincere gaze, warmth and friendliness radiating off of her in waves. Raven stalls slightly, gazing up at her. She simply nods at Apache, turning her gaze back to her books. 'Can I be of any assistance?'

"If you can read Latin or Azarathian, be my guest," Raven doesn't miss a beat, discarding one of the books and picking up another with her telekinesis.

'Oh, uh, maybe I'll just let you work at it then,' Apache lays her head on her paws. Raven just hums.

Apache watches, amazed, as Raven flips through book after book, simply scanning the pages before discarding them.

'How can you tell what you're reading?' Apache is amazed at the spectacle infront of her. She'd never seen someone look through books like that before.

Raven doesn't look up. "My eyes can take the information in without me missing something,"

'Thats really neat,' Apache lifts her head, tilting it as she gazes at the steadily growing pile of looked through books.

"Don't sound so sure," Raven grumbles. Apache drops it, killing the sentance that's dangling on her tongue by a thread. Must have something to do with her paternity. Apache huffs, laying her head back down. She stretches herself out, pushing her legs out behind herself, crossing her front paws to prop her head on. Raven pauses. Apache's eyes shift upward to find a raised eyebrow. "Doesn't that hurt?"

'No?' Raven looks back down to her books.

"So, a cartoon?" Raven's words catch Apache off guard after an hour of silence. Apache's eyes drift to her from the pile of eleven books that Raven had looked through already. She's got a good twenty more to go.

'Uh, yeah? What about it?' Apache is slightly confused.

"We're a cartoon where you come from?" Raven glances up at her for a moment before her eyes turn back to the thick and ancient books infront of her.

'Oh! Yeah! It was my favorite when I was little. I remember, I was all about Avatar the Last Airbender and Teen Titans. Then they made Teen Titans Go and ruined my childhood,' Apache shivers. 'The Legend of Korra made up for the dissapointment, though.'

"Teen Titans Go?"

'No, never mention that abomination again,' Apache put her left paw over her face as best she can.

"... What?"

'OH MY GOD!' Apach bursts out, springing up, her head thrown back as she spins around to pace the room, which startles Raven. Her eyes are only the slightest bit wider than normal as she watches after the flustered dog. 'That damn show, it has nothing on the original. Its downright rediculous and completely unrealistic. There isn't even any crime fighting in it! Its just rediculous and pointless things with no plot and no appeal. Not to mention every Titan is completely out of character! Even Beast Boy eats meat in that show!' With a groan, she lays back in her original spot, facing Raven. 'Sorry, I just feel strongly about it. Some people like it, and thats fine and all, but I don't.'

"Its that out of proportion?" Raven raises an eyebrow at her.

'Yes!' Apache throws her head back again. 'And its all in chibi!'

"Chibi?" Raven asks as she begins searching her books again.

'Y'know, that one cartoonie style with the blown up heads? That.' Raven just hums at her. 'The original is great though. There were some episodes that didn't really have a central point, but they were still interesting and had their own plot. My favorite episode is tied between Fear Itself and Switched.'

"What happened in those episodes?" Raven sounds dissinterested. Apache is faintly aware she might just be fishing for information. She blazes on anyway, unsure if she's digging her grave deeper.

'Well, in Fear Itself, Control Freak tried to take over that video store and that was the first time you guys ever seen him. Great sarcasm by you, by the way, and you guys watched Wicked Scary. You turned the tower into a haunted house unknowingly. Then in Switched the Puppet King tried to turn you guys into puppets but you an' Star escaped and ended up in eachothers bodies,' Apache lets her rambling die down as she gazes at her black paws. She glances up at the silence that meets her.

"Do you know what will happen when Trigon takes control?" Raven is giving her her full attention, something in her eyes that Apache can't place. Her ears flick just the smallest bit. She's quiet, amethyst boring into bi colors.

'I'm afraid to say incase something here turns out to be different from what I know. After all, I'm here. That in itself is different,' Apache's eyes fall, the floor becoming very interesting to her.

"At least tell me what you know. Its a basis if nothing else," Raven sounds eerily calm. The books have dropped to the floor infront of her.

'Well, you guys do manage to take Trigon out, I don't want to elaborate if thats alright,' Apache gazes up at the girl wearily. Raven tensly nods after a long few moments. Apache can feel relief wash through her, along with guilt for withholding information. She just can't say. What if something is totally off and one of the Titans dies or something? That would be on her for saying everything would be fine and they'd make it out relatively unscathed.

And then what if the situation turns out more like the Justice League vs Teen Titans?

Granted there are major differences already and this universe seems to be exclusively like the cartoon, but its still possible. Apache is only assuming, but if this universe is based at all on the comic even slightly, Raven already went to the Justice League first to ask for help.

And Zatanna rejected her and threatened her.

Apache has no idea, but the Justice League might just show up here on the day of reckoning itching for a fight. That is if Trigon doesnt possess them first.

Shes sincerely hoping not, cause thats too much for even her to handle.

'Raven, you don't know how much I would love to tell you, but theres too many possibilities, and I don't want you counting on one outcome. Thats shooting yourself in the foot before the race has even begun. Theres more than just a cartoon, theres a movie too, and that scenario is a complete 180 from the cartoon. It could go either way, or be something completely different from both of those. Its best to leave it to the unknown, cause I don't even know for sure,' Apache's ears are slack as she watches Raven continue to look through the books. The girl doesn't answer her. Apache sighs quietly.

The alarm blares through the tower, a cacophony that should be illegal as Apache's ears are blasted and she is snapped into wakefulness. Her eyes fall on the girl next to her on the bed as she sits up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. It had not been long since the two had went to bed, maybe an hour or two, Apache realizes as she gazes at the clock she can't read. Not much had been said after their initial conversation. Apache fears Raven is cross with her, but there is nothing that she can do about it now.

Its still pitch dark, not a hint of sun threatening to spill over the horizon. A spark of irritation rushes through Apache.

Raven quickly dresses herself and grabs onto Apache's collar. The two are teleported into the common room, a rush of tingling shooting through her body. Beast Boy is just rushing through the door, making the team complete. Robin is at the computer typing away to assess the situation. "H.I.V.E Five again."

Apache sighs, wondering if Robin does infact wear his uniform to bed.

Cyborg sighs. "They just cant give it up lately, can they?"

"Why four in the morning, though? They couldnt wait a few more hours?" Beast Boy yawns.

"C'mon guys, the faster we get this done the quicker we can get back to bed." Robin looks at his team, his eyes falling on Apache behind his mask. He does not look happy. "Apache is coming with us. Shes not staying here alone until we get a proper containment area organized, Titans, go!"

Apache feels pure irritation rush through her. They'd left her here how many times? She supposes thats out the window now, though. At least for awhile.

She would have loved to get back to bed, but she scurries after the Titans anyway. They all pack into the elevator, rushing out the front of the tower. The H.I.V.E. moves too fast for them to take the T-Car, supposedly.

Beast Boy carries Cyborg via his pteradactyl form, Star interlocks her arms with Robin's, and Raven forms a platform for Apache to hop onto.

They're at the scene within minutes. The bank's front is not a pretty sight. The glass is busted out along with some of the wall. Mammonth, Apache guesses. Inside is not faring much better. Wood, plaster, insulation and glass is scattered everywhere.

"We've been here too long, lets go! We've got enough. Mammoth, you didn't grab a dye pack, did you?" A feminine voice reaches Apache's ears. That voice sounds familiar to her. She tilts her head.

"You're right, you've been here too long. It seems like you'll be joining Billy Numerous and See-More in jail tonight." Robin quips as Mammoth and Gizmo step out of the bank's vault with large sacks of money slung over their shoulders. Jinx had been trying to herd them out of the bank but it hadn't worked. Jinx's eyes land on Apache at her spot under Raven's floating form after a moment and linger. Apache perks her ears in question at the rose quartz glance.

"You're gonna pay for fuckin' this heist up and for lockin' my teammates up, you worthless Titans!" Gizmo is instantly angry. Gizmo is a huge annoyance to Apache. She rolls her eyes in distatse. She glances at Robin's, Cyborg's, and Beast Boy's backs before returning her gaze to the behemouth that is Mammoth and the midget that is Gizmo.

The Titan's jump into action, Cyborg taking on Gizmo, Beast Boy and Star taking on Mammoth. Raven takes on Jinx and Robin jumps between the action, helping whoever needed it. At the moment it happened to be Cyborg as Gizmo had knocked him back into and through the wall with the blast of what appeared to be a lazor or cannon to Apache.

Apache sneaks over and behind a desk that sits in the middle of the bank, peaking her head out to watch the action.

Jinx sends waves of pink into the cieling, causing the drywall to fall on Raven. She dodges it well enough.

Raven knocks Jinx back into a potted plant that sits on the far wall behind Apache's desk. The result of this is of course the pot exploding and the soil within getting into Jinx's cotton candy hair. Apache flinches back, lowering her ears. That had to have hurt.

Apache yelps and dashes for the wall a few feet from Jinx, who had jumped back up and was sending waves of bad luck at the dark Titan, when the desk she'd taken refuge under is picked up and thrown. Mammoth had picked it up and thrown it at Star. The Tamaranian dodges it, sending starbolts into the mammoth of a teen. He doesn't get up again, which doesn't surprise Apache.

Right before Gizmo is hit square with Robin's staff and Cyborg rips his spider like legs from his back pack thing, he aims multiple cannons at the other three Titans. A beam hits Raven square in the back, Star dodges in time and Beast Boy is meerely knocked off his feet. Apache inwardly gasps, jumping up out of her crouch to gaze worridly at Raven's fallen form.

Jinx sees her oportunity and dashes through the nearby hole in the wall, her form capturing Apache's attention from her periferal.

Apache goes to jump at her to hopefully pin her down long enough for Robin or whoever to capture her, but her plan backfires. With a wave of Jinx's hand, it feels like she's being choked. She's enveloped in a dull pink glow. She gives a half yelp as her body is forced to fallow after Jinx. She captures one last glance of Raven as she pushes herself into a sitting position before her view of the Titans is gone.

At the yelp, the Titans turn to see the last trace of a dull pink enveloped tail. Apache is gone.

"No," Raven mumbles, her back searing. Robin finishes tying off Mammoth and Gizmo's restraints then quickly rushes out the door after the two, the look of a devil upon his features.

"Are you okay Star, BB?" Cyborg asks, finding his teammates in the wreckage.

"I am uninjured." Star allows as she quickly makes up her mind to fallow after Robin, green igniting at her sides as she flies at top speed through the hole in the wall.

"I'm good." Beast Boy groans, rubbing at his sore butt. He'd fallen hard on it, of course.

"You okay, Raven? Your leotard is burnt through." Cyborg kneels next to the girl that he'd deemed his little sister, a concerned look upon his face as he gently brushes her cloak aside.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine." Raven's voice has the undertone of a shake to it. She can only stare at the hole in the wall, baffled and disbelieving.

"Uh, this doesnt look fine." Cyborg quips as he moves the singed fabric away. "This is a really bad burn. We need to get you back to the tower." Their eyes meet, one concerned, the other slowly becoming horrified, even if she wasn't showing it.

"No, we all need to find Apache." She says firmly, meeting Cyborg's eyes defiantly.

"Robin will find her. You need this wound dressed." He crosses his arms, looking down at her in that way only an older brother could.

"No, Apache needs to be found, now. She knows things, you don't understand, we cant let that slip through our fingers, Vic," Raven attempts to stand, but Cyborg blocks her.

"I'm not going to argue with you on this, Rae. I'd rather you not get an infection." Cyborg throws the small girl over his shoulder despite her protests.

Apache tries with all her might to push against the concrete in resistance, but the only thing she has control of is her head. And even then, her muzzle is locked tightly shut. Her eyes are wide as the two duck into an alley and behind a dumpster. Her muscles are tense as she tries to struggle, to no avail.

She looks skyward, the moon nowhere in sight and a few stray stars scattered. Many of them are hidden behind the light pollution of the city.

She tries frantically to bark as a black siloughette hovers above, dull green disks at its side, before taking off in a different direction than it had come. She flattens her ears and drops her head in defeat.

This is just great.

What a time for this to happen. Theyre probably going to think she is part of some scheme now.

And what of Raven? She'd been hit. Was she even okay? She has to be!

A million different things cross Apache's mind as the two sit behind that dumpster for the next hour. About Raven, what the Titans would now think of her, about her lost memories, everything wrong with what was happening and what Jinx planned to do with her. She became increasingly sick to her stomach. She was just thankful she didn't feel the need to vomit. With her being unable to unclamp her jaws she'd more likely than not drown in her own vomit.

The sky is beginning to lighten in the early morning hour when Jinx decides its time to make their move. Jinx cautiously surveys their surroundings before ducking from alleyway to alleyway, making their way through the city. Her days if thievery have aided her well. Shes as silent as a mouse, and just as visible as one. Theyre moving farther and farther away from the bay, to Apache's growing horror. Her eyes are frantically scanning the sky and the surrounding city.

They're inbetween the suburbs, what looks more like a rundown ghetto that obviously was the poorer and older part of the city (Apache isnt surprised as even San Francisco has one), and buisness district when Jinx ducks into an old abandoned warehouse. Apache lowers her ears as her body follows through the rusted out entry way. Old dusty equipment is placed throughout the old building. Many of the windows are boarded up or broken out, and the rotten and mouldy smell assaults her nose.

Jinx aproaches an odd looking rust covered machine. After fiddling with a pannel on the side and removing it, she knotts together two wires, causing a trap door to fly open less than a foot away. Jinx unknotts the wires, replaces the pannel and climbs down the rungs. Apache's body floats down after her, disturbing her more than it should have. She tries to catch a last glance at the early morning light before she's completely enveloped by the hole, to no avail.

As soon as Jinx steps foot on the smooth concrete, she punches a code into a pannel next to the rungs of the ladder. The trap door swishes shut as an acceptance beep rings out. Apache can just catch the code from her angle in the air over the thief's head, 974386. She files it away for later use as she'll undoubtably need it.

Apache is placed on her paws, the cold concrete causing a chill to seep through her paw pads. She is enveloped in a warm, homey smell, like laundry soap and undertones of coffee amoung other things. The smell of cooked vegetables and meat hangs in the air so lightly that if she didn't have such a sensitive nose she would never have noticed. Must be from last nights dinner. It smells absolutely wonderful, and reminds her of stirfry. She promises herself that when she's human, the first thing she's gonna do is down an entire wok of stirfry, the rice being optional if it takes too long to cook.

With another wave of Jinx's hand Apache is finally released from the spell. She shakes herself out and lowers her body into the near corner, baring her teeth with a gutteral snarl. She has a tough time keeping the act up when her eyes lock with expressive cat-like rose quartz. Something shoots through her belly. She recognizes the emotion from the same action with guarded amethyst. She drowns in those seas of violet. She has to stop herself from drowning in strawberry hugh.

Jinx's knees hit concrete. "Aww sweetness, don't be like that." She coos, leaning forward with a goofy smile on her thin yet pastel pink lips.

Apache is having none of it. She gives another low growl.

Jinx gives a sigh and rises back to her feet. She sashays into the joint living area, kicking her boots off and pulling her shirt off, revealing a simple black bra and ivory skin underneath. Apache knew that had to be makeup she was wearing, even if her skin isn't much darker than the makeup itself Its almost transluscent, pale with the slightest flesh tint. "Y'know whats nice about the boys being away? I get to walk around naked all I want." She sounds delighted as she glances back at Apache. She tosses her shirt in a corner, pulling her leggings off next. She tosses her bra off as she opens a light brown door and closes it after herself.

Apache rises, perking her ears at the distinct sound of water hitting porcelain.

Jinx is taking a shower of all things.

Apache lowers her ears again, turning to look up at the ladder with a huff.

She has to get out and get back, even if it means busting her head open or reswimming the bay. She has no idea how that's gonna play out.

She needs to think this one through. Sbe hasnt thought much through lately, but if she is going to think anything through it has to be this. This is the one imperative thing that she only has one chance to get right.

Her ears shoot up.

She has to go out to relieve herself. Unless Jinx wants to pick up after her and continuously scrub urine.

Which Apache guarantees the goofy girl absolutely does not.

Apache feels sly. She'll make sure she pees on the nice black rug first. On the edge of it on the concrete too so it doesnt go unoticed. She would be more satisfied if the carpet was white. The yellow stain on pristein white carpet would be beyond satisfying.

She sits. Maybe if she made it out to be that she wasnt house broken Jinx would just get tired of it and throw her out. Thats not necessarily reliable though. Jinx might not care. She might know some trick to easily clean the mess without lifting a finger which would totally defeat the purpose of her even soiling the carpet as her eacape route. Its worth a shot nonetheless.

She wont dare do more than pee though. She wont risk having her nose rubbed in THAT. If Jinx is even strong enough to do that.

Apache sobers. Oh, her magic will ensure she'd have no problem.

She gazes around the large room. Black and yellow is the obvious color scheme.

Bright yellow walls stab her tired eyes. Black leather furnature and carpet compensates for the harsh tone. Not a color scheme she'd personally choose.

A hallway just past the brown door Jinx had entered contains eight other brown doors from what she can see. Opposite of all this is a spatious kitchen with the same color scheme. The black appliances glow pristeinly. Apache didnt know what she expected but she knew she didnt expect it to be so clean. Even her own house isnt this clean.

Its either a testament of Jinx's magic or the members of the H.I.V.E. Five are neat freaks. With Mammoth thats hard to believe. Apache believes him to be similar or worse to Beast Boys unkemptness.

A thought strikes her like a kick to her rib cage.

What if Brother Blood is still in control of the H.I.V.E. Five's minds?

But then wouldn't the H.I.V.E. Five still be at the Academy and not in this little hideout?

She's in the time span of the fourth season. Didn't they take on Brother Blood and Jinx transfer over because of Kid Flash in the fifth?

Apache becomes frightened. Brother Blood is not someone she wants to meet just yet, if ever.

She has to ask Raven about this to guage the situation. It isn't like she can consult Jinx on the matter. Apache doubts Jinx would even tell her.

But she has to know if Jinx is under Blood's mind control. She doesn't know why, but its important to her. She wonders if perhaps the Academy is similar to being in the Army reserves. Maybe they just go for a certain timeframe every once in awhile? Blood did say that Gizmo, Jinx and Mammoth were his top students. Maybe that has something to do with why they don't live at the Academy?

Perhaps they graduated.

Then again, if they are required to go in every so often, that would be the time that Blood would most likely reinforce his mind control. She has no basis on this, of course. She's looking to all of the fanfiction she's ever read for all possibilities.

There are differences between the cartoon and here, maybe the Titans already took out Brother Blood? No, then maybe there wouldn't be a H.I.V.E. Five. Jinx is only interested in the Brotherhood of Evil because thats what she thinks she's destined to do. Kid Flash plays that card heavily with Jinx.

Apache's ears are pushed forward as far as they'll go. Maybe she can play that card and try to get Jinx to be an actual Titan instead of an honorary one. She never liked Kid Flash and Jinx paired anyway, and that would give Jinx a purpose. She'd much rather see Jinx with Cyborg or Raven, but maybe she's just a bit biased. She could play that card ten times better than Kid Flash ever could. And she wouldn't push Jinx like he did. She could present all the information to Jinx in a very persuasive way that would really make her think over time instead of a few hours or whatver the time frame had been. She can ease Jinx into it and it would be way more effective.

Of course she'd need to be human first.

Apache doesnt dare move from her spot, she simply gazes around the supposed lair as she thinks all this over, tiredness seeping into her mind. She curles hurself in the corner as her mind races and puts her head on her paws, her eyes drooping instantly despite the cold seeping into her aching and tired body.

She hadnt realized she dozed off when a rush of air accoupanying a door opening wakes her. She only opens her eyes, lowering her ears farther. Jinx is rubbing at her hair with a fuchsia towel, her body still bare. Apache's eyes widen at the sight.

Apache is extremely glad she is a dog. She cant help but stare a Jinx's developed but on the smaller side chest. The girl is completely unaware from what Apache would think. She is slightly ashamed of herself, she didnt even stare at Raven like this. No man could ever pull a reaction from her like this girl and Raven could.

Her heart is thumping painfully in her chest, her mouth has ran dry.

Her stomach drops and her eyes widen.

She'd had a girlfriend back home too. And she'd be very upset she was eyeing another person.

She can faintly remember... No, she wont go there. Too little remembered, even if she recalls it being the best and most terrifying moment of her life.

She notes how Jinx's ribs and hip bones stick out and her legs are overly thin whereas Raven is thicker, her body holding beautifully sculpted curves. Raven is skinny, no doubt, but her ribs are not visible. Jinx looks almost sickly skinny compared to Raven.

Her face and neck is now completely devoid of its blanched makeup, and lightly sunkissed ivory skin is exposed. A few dark moles dot in various places on her neck and chest, even one on her overly flat belly. Apache takes an instant liking to the tan mole that resides on the corner of her mouth, like Marilyn Monroe.

Jinx tosses the towel aside, her cotton candy hair touseled and hanging, free of its elaborate updo. Apache wonders just how she gets her hair to defy gravity in such a way.

Jinx is very strinking without the makeup. Her eyes still gleam rose quartz and catlike, open and expressive.

It crosses Apache's mind that Jinx is albino, but she dismisses the thought on account of her moles. Albino people don't have moles.

Or they can?

Wait, biology class. She wrote a report on it. People with OCA2 albinism can have moles.

Apache's eyes fallow Jinx as she sashays down the hallway, lightly dancing to a tune in her head. Apache is ashamed of herself as her eyes fallow Jinx's backside. She enters the thrid door to the left, leaving it open. Apache lifts her right ear at the pastel pink and blue mixed with scarlett that is shown. She should have expected nothing else of Jinx.

The tapping of dwars rings out, then Jinx emerges after flicking the light off, shutting the door behind her.

She adorns an oversized Metalica bandshirt, her pastel and dark blue stripped panties barely visible. She has a large scarlett comforter within her arms that is trailing the ground behind her.

She tosses the blanket on the couch and flicks the large flatscreen TV on before moving to the kitchen. As the TV comes to life, Apache recognizes an episode of The Walking Dead upon the screen. Her eyes fall back to Jinx. She's filling a pot with water. She puts it on the stove to boil before seating herself on the couch, pulling the comforter over her legs. Apache doesn't remover her eyes from the girl for even a moment.

When the show falls into a commercial, Jinx again rises. She pulls a small box out of the black cupboard. She dumps the contents into the pot of boiling water after ripping the top open.

Apache closes her eyes after rolling them for good measure. If there was one thing she really didnt care about, its watching Jinx make maccaroni and cheese.

Apache bolts up. She'd fallen completely asleep. And had apparently splayed herself out in the process. Not her best moment.

She gazes around the dark room, the only source of light being the TV. FX is on, playing Iron Man 3, she recognizes. The couch is angled in such a way that she can see Jinx propped up on a pillow and smothered in her comforter, the only visible part of her being her eyes and above, which are closed. She's completely relaxed and snoring lightly.

The next thing Apache is aware of is the horrendous need to pee. She hadnt went since early the night before.

Now is obviously the best time to execute her plan, even if she's second guessing it. It just doesn't seem right for her to soil a living space. Its so unsanitary!

As she rises, she notices something a few feet from her that wasnt there before.

Its...

She gets closer just to make sure.

It is.

A plate of maccaroni and cheese.

Her mouth waters despite herself. She doesnt even like it that much for crying out loud, but the last human food she'd had was that hot dog at the park and before that two or three pieces of pizza that Cy had slipped her on various occasions. Oh yeah and the donuts that Val would slip her when Raven would take her to the shop with her. Either way it wasnt much to Apache.

The food is cold, hardly any smell is rising from it. It had sat here awhile.

Apache looks back up at Jinx after giving the food a thoughrough sniff to ensure it hadnt been laced with something. It certainly smells alright and not out of the ordinary.

She couldnt do it now. At least not on the carpet, cause she has to go really bad and she was not going to wake up Jinx. That could go one of two ways, really good or really bad. Amd that fifty percent chance is not a good compeller.

With her ears flat, she squats in the corner opposite of her chosen one on the concrete. She feels terrible about the huge puddle she leaves, but she cant help it.

Shes scarfs down the maccaroni and cheese, not even tasting it. She licks the plate clean, before curling back up where she had been before.

She's conflicted when she knows she shouldnt be.

Everything happens for a reason.

This cant be a coincidence.

Right?

T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.

"Did you find them?" is the first thing from Raven's mouth when Robin enters the ward. Amethyst eyes are searching and worried.

"No. I don't understand how Jinx was able to dissapear so quickly. I knew something was going on. What perfect timing this all happened in." the Boy Wonder's arms are crossed, his eyebrows creased in a distasteful way.

"Robin, no, she wasnt lying at any time." Raven pleads with him, to no avail. The boy has no sympathy.

"Even you can be decieved, Raven, wether you think so or not. Kori and Gar are still looking. I came to check on you, though."

"I'm completely fine."

"I don't call a thrid degree burn on your back 'fine'." Cyborg cuts in. Raven had denied the IV with antibiotics he tried to give her so he's been cleaning the wound out with strong antibacterial washes and bandaging it for the last hour. Raven had told him it was unnecissary and she'd be fully healed in about a week but he was having none of it.

"Its that bad?" Robin questions, his eyebrows lifting in concern.

"I'll be fully healed in a week with no scar, tops. Apache needs to be found." Raven continues on, worry and panic rushing through her, though she doesn't show it. If things continue like this she'll have to take another trip to Nevermore sooner than schedualed to ensure her emotions don't get out of hand.

"Why are you so concerned with her?" Cyborg questions, equal parts curious and anger lacing his tone. Cyborg had already confided in her how betrayed he felt, how hurt he was about the entire situation. Raven had simply told him to give it a chance, be open minded. For all he know Apache could be one of the greatest things to happen to them. He had just been surprised that Raven was acting as the voice of reason and gave her encouraging words little thought with a ruffle of her hair, something he only did when they were alone.

"I... I dont know, but i can feel that she's important. I just know it." Raven is unsure if her scattered emotions are getting to her or if this feeling she has holds any merit. She is apprehensive to find out, but time would tell sonner or later. She just hopes everything will work out in the Titan's favor and not result in the end of her home.


	8. Sickness

Apache is brought to awareness at an offended gasp, fallowed by grumbling with some unsavory words peppered in. She doesnt dare give away that she is awake.

A hand taps her shoulder firmly, to which she bolts up with a growl at. It hadnt hurt at all, but still.

"You see this?" Jinx points at the half dried puddle. "No. You dont do that again. Now up, I'll take you outside." She moves to get herself dressed for the day, still being in her oversized shirt and no shorts. Her hair is a tangled mess.

Apache rises, shaking herself out.

She would really have to be vigilant. The second Jinx slips up would be her opportunity; and would also most likely be her only opportunity. She gets more sick to her stomach.

At this point she just wants to go home, wherever that be. She doesn't want to deal with this complicated mess anymore. Her head hurts, her body is sore, and she just wants a hamburger with extra cheese and onion and some barbecue Lays for gods sake! Was that too much to ask?

Apparently so. She sighs.

She knows the first thing she's going to do when Raven figures out how to turn her back is beg the Titans to take her to either Apple Bee's or a good mexican restauraunt. Either would do. Mexican food or stir fry or a humburger; theres just so many choices!

She lays back down. She'd been depressed, severely so, before. She had worked so hard and had pulled herself out of it before with the help of her girlfriend. But now, she can feel herself slowly slipping back into it. She's tired, she feels heavy, and she knows she just about doesnt want to do anything anymore. The homesickness isnt helping one bit. As awesome as the Titans are, they're just not normal for her or family.

The kicker for her though is she doesnt even know exactly what shes supposed to be missing. Her girlfriend that she couldnt even remember the face of? Her unknown to her mother? What about her dad?

That makes the feeling in her stomach worse. So obviously her dad must be a toutchy subject.

She sighs deeply.

She looks back up as Jinx steps lightly down the hall in her usual platform boots, a ratty old white towl draped over her arm. Apache is surprised at the high pony tail she adorns, her bangs fluffed out adorably. What doesnt surprise Apache is the bright pink leggings stretched over her legs, red and black stars decorating the sides of her thin calves. Apache is also a bit surprised at the black sweater with pale pink "Monterey" seawn into the front.

Jinx drapes the towel over the puddle then turns to the key pannel. Apache cant tell what shes punching into it, though shs already knows.

When the pannel slides open, Apache's body is again sinched up at the wave of Jinx's hand. Jinx climbs up the rungs and Apache's body fallows. If Jinx would just let her she could probably figure out how to climb the latter herself.

Unlike last night, though, she is immediately released upon their arrival to the surface. Jinx picks up a dusty lenth of what looks like the remnants of a black rope that was sitting along the side of a rusted machine, which is about five feet long. Apache lowers her ears as Jinx grasps her collar, looping the rope through it and into a knot. She grasps the spade shaped tag, twisting it through her nimble fingers.

"Apache, huh?" Apache glares up at her in challenge. "Where'd they get that from? The Native American tribe?" Her lips quirk upward. "Have I got an idea."

She pulls Apache along and out into the overcast outside world to the dogs hesitation.

Jinx casts Apache a rose quartz glance. "I've always wanted a dog, y'know? Being in the Academy never really allowed me to, though."

Apache rolls her eyes. If she was taking Apache from the Titans in desperation, doesn't she know there are shelters full of dogs that need homes? Millions of dogs to chose from that need homes yet she takes Apache? Either she isn't thinking, or she never really considered it.

She trots ahead of Jinx and to a patch of heavy weeds. She glances up at Jinx with her ears flat, but squats amoung the overgrown patch anyway. If Jinx wants to watch her pee so be it.

She fallows hesitantly after Jinx as she makes her way back the way they had came into the city. Apache wrinkles her nose at all the garbiage in the streets and the smell of oil and rubber wafting off the asfault.

Apache is certain the Titans are still looking, so if they havent scoped out wherever Jinx is planning to go, maybe they'll be seen. This causes a small flutter of hope to bloom in her belly and her tail to lazily wave. She keeps in stride with Jinx easily as they meander past the occasional person. Apache catches sight of a cat in an alley, a fuzzy black and white body that dissapears behind a dumpster. Her ear sets itself back as she turns her gaze elsewhere. Mainly to the sky in hope.

They don't actually go far, to Apache's dissapointment.

Its only a few blocks before Jinx walks up to the side of an earth colored building, a window for walk up guests available on one side and a drive through on the other.

Its a Starbucks.

Apache tilts her head at the spectacle. She didn't take Jinx as the $5 coffee type. Even she only got Starbucks on special occasions. She couldn't even afford a Panera Bread latte for heaven's sake.

The drive through is extremely buisy, the walk up window less so. Theres only one person in line ahead of them, a homely looking man in scruffy clothes

When the man recieves his ordered beverage, Jinx steps up to the window, a goofy winning smile on her lips.

"Hey, there dear. What can I get for you?" a teenaged boy has his hands folded in the window as he asks. Apache can just see him. His blond hair is shaggy, his brown eyes gleaming with mirth.

And... He's got a little bit of makeup on!

Apache inwardly chuckles. So he's into drag? That or he's gay. Either way he's got the features to pull it off and Apache isnt judging. She wags her tail furiously.

"Well, dear, how about a grande oreo frappuccino?" Jinx sounds sickly sweet, her emphasis on dear dripping sarcasm. The boy doesnt take notice and flashes her a winning smile.

"Comin' right up, gorgeous. That'll be $5.75. Name?"

"Oh, uh..." Jinx hesitates as she hands the boy a $10 bill. "Maya."

With a nod the boy dissapears.

Maya? Is that her real name or an alias?

Apache is full blown curious now. Maya would just fit her perfectly as her true given name with that cotton candy hair and eyes of hers.

A few minutes passes by, Jinx taking no notice as she people watches and gazes down at Apache every so often before the boy reamurges, change and a cup in his hand.

"Here's your drink and change. Have a wonderful day, gorgeous."

Jinx thanks him snidely before turning on her heel, instantly sipping her frappuccino.

"The one thing I'll pay for an some pretty boy has to make it weird." Jinx grumbles when they're a block away from the buisy establishment. Apache chuckles in her head at that.

They meander their way through the buisy afternoon streets. Apache doesnt know what to think, and she cant escape teathered to Jinx like this.

Well, unless her collar somehow broke, but she isnt that lucky.

She inwardly snorts. If Jinx is such bad luck then how hasn't Apache been able to find an opening yet? Well, she supposes that would be Apache's bad luck, not Jinx's.

She does know one thing, the thief next to her has some pretty big balls to go out in public with her only after a few hours of taking her from the Titans.

Her ears shoot up at something grasping her fur in a death hold. She turns her head to find a young boy, maybe three, grasping her fur in one hand, the other encased in his mothers much larger one.

"Dog!" he says happily. His mother turns around with a gasp.

Jinx only notices when the rope loses all of its slack that something is different and turns around.

"It wont bite him, will it?" the mother instantly says in a panick without thinking, trying to detatch her son from the dogs soft fur.

"Now why would she do that?" Jinx grins. "If she was gonna bite him she would have already, dont ya know anything 'bout dogs?"

"Its a pit bull! Of course it would bite him!" she turns to her son. "Let go right now!" When he does, the mother pulls him away into the crowd. Apache drops her ears as her eyes fallow them until they dissapear.

Jinx tugs them along, continuing their meandered pace down the sidewalk.

"What a dumb lady. Some people just don't know anything," she sips her frappuccino again, catlike eyes calculating.

Apache is just realizing just how expressive this girl is, especially next to Raven's guarded demeanor. She's an open book. Not the best quality for a master criminal.

Apache is trying to script what to say to Jinx in her head. It might not work, but then again it just might. If Jinx's heart isn't quite as into being a criminal as Apache is assuming, it shouldn't be too hard to get her to transfer over. She just needs a good reason and a purpose and someone to stand behind her to make it not so hard.

She's thinking of every situation in which Jinx would be a valuable asset. The fight with Trigon certainly qualifies as number one. The Brotherhood and H.I.V.E. would definitely weaken if not fall apart without its master student.

"Nothin' big I can do but solo heists and sit around until the boys get back, huh, pretty girl?" Jinx pats Apache's head. Apache rolls her eyes. If this is how her dog feels when she talks to her like this she really needs to quit. If she ever sees her dog again...

They're heading back the way they came. Looks like Apache might not get her chance today.

She huffs in irritation, glaring at the nasty old rope she's teathered by.

T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.

Raven is usually never one for getting too attatched to something. She knew how badly it could hurt to have something she cared about ripped away from her.

She's also very prone, despite herself, to unknowingly get attatched to things.

These people she's come to call 'friends' and would never admit otherwise, are actually her family. The only family she's ever known at that. With the threat of Trigon a few months away, she knew it wasn't good to be attatched to them, or them be like family to her.

It makes her emotions go unstable, thinking what would become of them October thirtyfirst.

But now, Apache has to be factored into the picture. Raven doesn't know for sure, but if what Apache told them is true, she has a small sliver of hope. Situations like this don't just happen.

Azarath comes to mind first. For who else could be more powerful in all the dimentions to send a being from one dimention to another than the head priest of Azarath?

And not only that, but completely mask the aura and mind of said being from her until direct contact of the minds caused the spell to be lifted. All animals have auras and minds, no doubt, but Raven finds them easiest to block out. Their human counterparts are enough of a weight on her mind.

Azarath, she knew, wanted rid of all the demons that wanted to destroy dimentions. This could be their contribution to destroying Trigon. Her hypothesis of this of course wasn't concrete. She didnt know what had become of Azarath since she left all those years ago and she couldnt just go back and ask the head priest if he has been behind this entire ordeal. No one just gets to sit down and question the head priest.

So here she sits, finally after a long day in the infirmary, meditating and trying to lock onto a specific aura. One that felt different than the rest.

Every universe has a sort of aura spectrum. The people of this earth have a variety of auras, each one unique, yet they all have a distinct core. This is the universe they call home.

The aura she's looking for is going to be sickly with a different core from the others.

Theres a period of rest when a person enters a new dimention. Their auras suffer under the pressure of the new universe. There have been occasions when weak auras crossed dimentions and they couldnt survive acclamation. It takes about a month for an aura to begin looking sick, and it only gets worse from there.

Acclamation generally takes fifteen to twenty-two months, and once that period is over, its difficult to go back to the auras original universe. The core of the aura stays the same, but its a completely separate acclamation to go back home. And with an already weakened aura from the acclamation before, it could be lethal even for the strongest of auras.

She hadn't been aware of Apache's aura long enough to lock onto it like she could with any of the other Titans, so she has to rely on Apache's distinct core and the state of her aura, which would be slightly more difficult and time consuming.

She's already combed the west and north sides of the city, and is frustrated.

Not even the Academy held the one she's searching for.

She takes a calming breath, then resumes, this time on the east side of the city.

She'd been at this for five hours, it is beginning to get dark. She would have to stop and meditate soon.

Before she can begin combing the slums, a sick aura sticks out like a sore thumb to her. She cant pin point it, but its there. It has a different core as well. Its strong, especially for a sick aura. Even terminally ill people's auras are stronger than usual, as they were getting ready to either reincarnate, or move on. She's confused at a weaker aura, almost nonexistant, that is attatched to the stronger one. It seems almost... Animal like. Never had she experianced bonded auras, she'd only ever heard of them from ancient Azarathian texts. She's confused by this, but is certain nonetheless that that is Apache.

Shes faintly aware that it might be Jinx's doing that she cant pin point Apache directly, but its a good starting point.

She pulls her soul self back to her, gracefully dropping out of her medatative form. With an elated huff, she picks up her communicator, dialing Robin's line.

"What's up, Raven?"

"I have an area for us to keep watch on for Jinx and Apache."

"Yeah? Whenever you're ready meet us in the common room to start mapping it out."

... ... ... ...

Slow chapter. We toutch a little bit on Apache's jump and see a little bit on whats feuling her moods. Theres homesickness and loss, but theres more to it. Little bit of a plot builder i guess. I think i have a concrete course for the rest of the story and it should last between 20 - 35 chapters, give or take. We still got some road paving to go, so stick around!


	9. End of an Era

Three days at least of doing nothing really begins to eat at Apache.

The frequent trips outside to do her buisness were about it, and Jinx always had her tethered.

On the second day Jinx had in fact found a length of rope a good twenty feet long and that was what Apache was tied to when Jinx left her outside. She actually felt greatful. She didnt have to do the unsightly infront of Jinx, which would have been way beyond degrading for them both.

Jinx had went on a solo heist and left Apache outside in the middle of the night at one point. She was only gone for an hour and Apache had refuge in the warehouse but still. She had tried to chew through the rope where it was tied to an old water spout during that time. She hoped that would be a good place incase Jinx had come back before she could finish so the girl didn't see the frayed rope. Apache had been surprised when Jinx had come back, two overly full duffle bags slung over her shoulders. Full of what Apache hadn't known.

Despite this, Apache was still nothing short of fuming. She wasnt ever left alone long enough to attempt to finish chewing through the rope so she didnt even try lest she get caught trying, and her collar is too tight to slip out of.

Not to mention the growing knot in her stomach the longer she stayed around and watched the charming girl.

Its more than terrifying her.

Because she knows this feeling all too well.

She needs to hurry and get away from the charming thief before she makes a decision she'll regret.

A wave of warmth blasts through her belly as she watches Jinx play Just Dance on the new looking Wii from her spot in the corner of the nice leather couch. She'd finally gathered enough courage to lay on the couch with the girl last night when she had insisted that Apache join her. She didn't realize just how much she loves being a pillow as a dog. She can still vividly remember the smell of strawberries, lavendar, sage and sugar.

The wave of her hips.

The adorable tilt of her head.

Her light nimble steps.

Her precision.

Her absolute grace.

Her charming and coniving grin.

Apache lowers her ears.

She's making herself sick.

Because this feeling, not long before Jinx took her, had blossomed for Raven as well.

And its not just admiration.

She knows the difference.

Admiration had worn off about a month after she'd gotten here. She's way over that now.

Shes completely sick over it; she'd never even felt this way about her girlfriend, and she'd thought she loved her. And it wasnt something she took lightly. It had taken her almost a year to tell her girlfriend she loved her, when she was positive that she did. They were even talking about getting married in a few years.

Jinx dances her way through at least half the songs before sighing and shutting the Wii off. She stretches before glancing at the clock on the DVD player.

"Its one? Wow, I played this all morning?" Jinx places herself next to Apache on the couch, sliding her platform boots closer to her from under the dark stained wood coffee table. She grasps her cheap looking smart phone, tapping away at the screen. She grins. "Wanna go for a quick walk before it starts raining again?"

Apache's ears shoot up. Yes, she did. Another chance at Jinx slipping up. At least she's forcing herself to think like this. She doesn't have a choice, damn it. She has to get back to the Titans.

Jinx laces up her shoes before going through the motions to leave. Apache is again teathered to the five foot length of rope as she gazes at the trap door directly above the ladder, eager to see the outside world.

As they retrace their steps to the Starbucks, it sprinkles briefly before the sky once again gives up its attepmt to rain for the moment. It had rained an inch and a half over night and over the morning after all. Typical February weather in Jump, Apache supposes as she gazes up at a sweatshirt adorned Jinx, light blue leggings stretched over her legs.

The streets are drenched, the gutters all full to the brim with rain water. Apache isnt necissarily enjoyong the wet sidewalks on her pawpads, let alone the mist and sickly smell of oil thats being kicked up from passing cars.

The starbucks is as buisy as ever due to the cold weather, the walk up window deserted nonetheless. Jinx dashes across the road with Apache when no cars are coming her way, the duo hopping over huge puddles.

A bored teenager comes to the window after a moment, her green eyes staring lamely at the girl and dog.

"Rough day?" Jinx teases. The girl hums.

"What can I get you?"

"Grande caramel mocha, please." Jinx hands the girl a $10. Apache can feel her nose scrunch the slightest bit.

"That'll be hot, right?"

Jinx cackles. "Right!"

The girl has Jinx's coffee out in record time. Both girls simply nod and Jinx goes on her way.

She pulls the green tab from the lid and tosses it in a nearby trashcan before heading a different way than they had gone before. Apache stays in step with Jinx as she tentivley sips on her hot coffee.

The lunch rush had already passed, so not many people are out, to Apache's relief. She steps tentvely and lamely over the darkened concrete.

Today just seemed like one of those days that hung over everyones head. At least to Apache.

She would love to curl up with a thick blanket and watch 101 Dalmations with some hot chocolate. Or even Oliver and Company, The Aristocats, Lady and the Tramp, The Emperor's New Groove, anything beside walking down the streets of Jump.

Apache can feel a gaze prickling her fur, causing her hackles to rise. Her head shoots up, her ears forward. Her ears swivel as she looks behind herself, taking in the surrounding city. She searches for the source of the feeling.

Her eyes fall on a familiar healthy figure outside a Subway across the street, amber eyes framed by a halo of curles and watching her intently. Their gazes meet and hold. Apache misses a step, slowing ever so slightly. The girl's eyebrows knit together, her plump lips slightly parting. Apache's eyes widen and adrenaline shoots though her body when the girl's free hand digs in her white sweater pocket to pull an iPhone from the fabric. After a few taps, she holds the phone to her ear.

The two round a corner, causing Apache to lose sight of Nicole.

Apache can feel her heart pick up along with her breath. Nicole had to have called Beast Boy if no one else. Apache looks up at Jinx, the girl completely unaware. Yes, she needs to get back, but she doesn't want Jinx thrown in prison. Why can't she talk to Jinx, send her away in time? This whole not being able to communicate is becoming rediculous.

They meander through a muddy alley, Apache stressing more than she should be. There's a homeless man huddled behind a dumpster, she notices. The smell of marijuana and some other substance is thick in the air. They walk through the long alley before popping out across the street from a very lush looking park.

They wait for what seems like a convoy of cars to pass before they dart acroas the drenched street, hopping onto the concrete. Jinx seems to be completely unaware of Apache's racing heart, thumping in her chest so hard its painful.

As the two step onto the grass, Apache is disgusted at the squelch of mud and grass underfoot. Jinx has shoes on, of course she wouldn't care about the mud.

Apache turns her gaze skyward. They would for sure be looking now that they knew Jinx is out and about with her. It would be any time. Apache hadn't noticed Nicole fallowing them so granted it would take a bit longer if she hadn't.

Her eyes are alert, intently watching their surroundings for any sign of the Titans. They pass various trees with new growth just beginning to blossom on the branches, delicate flowers that would soon become glossy leaves. Jinx seems to be ever oblivious to her tensness and unease as she sips her coffee. Apache can't help but wonder what she's thinking. She must not like being couped up for days at a time for her to be leasurly strolling through a park when she knows shes top priority to the Titans at this very moment.

She's so strung that she visibly jumps when she feels a raindrop on the top of her head smack in between her ears. She gazes skyward as the sky seems to open up above them, dropping rain as if a faucet had been turned on. They would quickly be soaked to the bone.

Jinx turns them back around with a hum, seemingly enjoying the rain. Apache steps heavily beside Jinx as she quivers, feeling the need to run. She's never been so strung before, and she has no idea how to cope.

Apache yelps and jumps back as a black raven opens up infront of the duo, red eyes blazing. Jinx's backside hits saturated grass due to the yank on the opposite end of the rope. They look wide eyed up at an irate looking Raven, amethyst fire dancing in her eyes. Jinx's coffee lays spilt and forgotten on the muddy grass less than a foot away.

"Give me back the dog." She grumbles, her hands positioned infront of her, black encasing them in a silent threat. The tone of her voice leaves no room for argument.

"And I should do that why? And especially not if you're just gonna take me in!" Jinx protests as she jumps back to her feet, Apache cringes at the mud stain on her cotton candy blue leggings.

"That isn't an option, you're going in either way." Jinx throws a hex in response.

Raven simply deploys her magic into a shield, diflecting Jinx's hex back into her. Jinx and Apache both go flying, landing hard in a huge muddy puddle. Raven snatches Jinx up in her magic, giving the pink haired girl a hearty squeeze. Jinx cries out in response.

'Raven, wait!' Apache pushes herself up out of the ankle deep puddle, mud and water running in rivets through her now not so black fur. Raven gives her a questioning and warning look out of the corner of her eye. 'Jinx is going to become an honorary Titan,' Raven's look turns skeptical. 'Hear me out. I forget the exact details, but she gets wrapped up in a bogus mission and Kid Flash is able to get her to transition over. Please let her go just this once.'

Raven glares, but Apache just stares up at her with pleading unwavering eyes.

Without looking away, Raven drops Jinx.

Jinx lands hard back into the puddle, and when she looks up, the Titan and black dog are nowhere in sight. She shivers, her breath hitching in the downpour.

Apache's paws hit grey carpet. She collapses without meaning to, her body still shuddering from being teleported. She glances around the familiar sight of the common room. She sighs in relief.

She glances up at Raven as the girl pulls her communicator from her waistband.

Apache's ears twitch at a familiar masculine voice.

"Raven, did you get her?"

"Yeah, I got her. I'm back at the tower."

"Alright, we'll meet you there shortly. Robin, out." Raven closes her communicator.

'So, Nicole called?' Apache lowers her head back to the carpet.

"Um, yeah," Raven raises an eyebrow at her.

'I seen her. I don't think she would have called if I hadn't turned around,' Apache laughs lightly.

"Lucky you then, huh," Raven huffs.

'No kidding,' Apache closes her eyes for a moment. 'How'd you find me first?'

"Simple, I locked onto your aura when Garfield got the call. We all left in a hurry," Raven informs, walking over and into the kitchen. She places her tea kettle on the stove after filling it with water. Its only now Apache sees that Raven is soaked. Apache just hums. They sit in silence until the rest of the team returns, which is after Raven has already poured her cup of tea. It was actually a short time as far as Apache is concerned. Cyborg must have either went 100 miles per hour down the access tunnel or they all flew back.

"Where's Jinx?" is the first thing from Robin's mouth.

"She slipped away before I could apprehend her," Raven answers him simply.

Apache is startled out of her skin when she is scooped up in someones arms and spun around too high in the air for her liking. "Oh, Apache! Friend Raven has found you! I am the very glad to see you!"

'Yeah, Star, me too,' Apache says despite Star not being able to hear her. Star sets her back on her own paws, kneeling down next to the dog and pulling her into her lap. Apache happily leans into the thin form of the Tamaranian princess.

"Yo, what up Apache," Beast Boy says in delight as he comes to seat himself next to Star and the dog. "Jinx didn't ruff you up too bad, did she?" Apache shakes her head with a roll of her eyes, causing the green toned boy to chuckle lightly. Leave it to him to be pulling jokes.

"Now is not the time to be joking around," Robin says seriously. "For all we know that could have been planned and Apache could have told Jinx or the H.I.V.E. what she's learned."

Apache barks at him in protest. 'She had no idea I'm not a dog!' she screeches in her head at him. Raven relays the information for her. Robin and Cyborg look at her skeptically. She lowers her ears as she gazes at the two male Titans, hurt washing through her veins and radiating through her eyes. Cyborg looks away.

"I did find the spells i need to turn Apache back and restore her memories." Raven's lovely monotone cuts through Apache's hurt mind and causes the rest of the team to stall, destracting them from all of the suspicion and emotion sailing through the room. She lifts her head from Star's chest to gaze dumbly at the grey skinned girl. Her eyes are shut lightly as she leans against the counter, her hands cradling her warm cup of tea.

'What...?'

"When can you do it?"

"I just have to set up what I need to perform the spell."

Apache can't believe what she's hearing.

... ... ... ... ...

I wanted to leave it on a bit of a cliffhanger. Will Raven's spells work? Will Apache get her much wnated hot chocolate and Disney movie? All to be answered next chapter.

Just a little side note. That last scene before we cut away from Jinx reminded me of Jet Pack Blues by Fall Out Boy. Its appropriate for the moment. Now I think im gonna go watch Happy Feet.


	10. Remember

Whoop! New chapter! Enjoy! BTW, comments help fuel my writting motivation and will help get chapters out quicker. :) Trust me, you'll want another chapter out quick after this one.

... ... ... ... ...

Human? She's going to turn me back into a human?

Apache's stomach twists painfully.

For a moment she's elated, then terrified beyond belief. This is going to complicate things further.

Her ears are pressed flat against her head.

Robin says something but it goes in one ear and out the other. She's dazed, staring up at the beautiful half demon infront of her. When Raven's eyes meet hers, the words register.

"Just let it dry and it'll vacuum right up."

Oh.

Right.

She's flilthy.

She turns her head to catch a glimpse of Star's chest, which is smeared with mud. The Tamaranian takes no notice, her arms still wrapped firmly around the dog as she watches the exchange between the other two Titan's.

"It'll take awhile to get everything set up correctly," Raven informs, glancing back up at Robin.

"Take your time, theres no rush. Let me know when you get done," The Boy Wonder turns, his cape billowing out behind him as he turns to exit the common room.

Apache gazes after him, her eyes narrowed. She is suspicious about this. It faintly occurs to her that Robin might be waiting for her to be human again before interogating her.

She leans back into Star with a huff.

'Can I be rinsed off, please?' she projects at Raven, uncomfortable with Cyborg's not so friendly stare.

"Sure, c'mon," Raven moves toward the door. Apache pulls out of Star's arms to fallow, trotting after the girl. She feels as if she should say something to the pretty Tamaranian, but theres not exactly any use at the moment.

'Are you okay? You got hurt,' Apache projects when they're alone in the hall. They turn down a flight of stairs heading toward the bedrooms and bathrooms.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm almost fully healed. Are you okay?"

Apache's eyes blow up for a moment at the concern, her belly irrupting in flutters. 'Yeah.'

They continue their walk in silence, Apache faintly aware of the mud and water dribbling into the carpet.

Apache watches in confusion as they pass both bathrooms. They go all the way to the end of the hall to Raven's claimed bathroom.

Apache stays silent as Raven opens the door, holding it for her. With a tilt of her head Apache enters the pristein bathroom.

Apache tilts her head in question at Raven as she closes the door behind her.

"Well?" Raven motions to the tub, the curtain already pulled back. Apache jumps easily into the white basin. Raven starts the shower, angling it to hit Apache. She yelps.

'Thats cold!' she shivers as she moves to the other end of the tub to escape the cold spray.

"Sorry," Raven smirks slightly. Apache notices muddy paw prints on the white tile. She lowers her ears. She really had drug mud all over the tower. "Better?" Raven questions her as she removes her hand from the spray.

'Much, thank you.' Apache sighs greatfully as the warmth slides down her chilled body, taking the mud with it. She watches as the brown water slides into the drain, flecks of sand fallowing at a slower pace and causing a stark contrast with the titanium white of the tub.

She glances up at Raven. She'd taken a seat on the closed toilet lid and was currently pulling a book from a cupboard drawer. Apache inwardly snickers at the display.

Apache tosses and turns, turning round in circles and even going as far as to roll over on her back under the warm spray until the water runs clear.

"You smell like wet dog," Raven informs none too helpfully.

'I think I realize this.' Apache rolls her eyes. 'I'm done, unless you feel like washing me out with soap so I don't smell like wet dog.'

Raven closes her book and gently sets it back in the drawer. She opens a cupboard, pulling out a violet towel. "I'll pass. Shake yourself out," Raven commands as she pulls the curtain closed with her magic. Apache instantly shakes herself out, wiggling her butt a bit longer than needed for good measure. The curtain is pulled back again and a towel hits Apache square in the face.

'He-ey!' Apache giggles, pawing at the heavy and rough fabric. Raven rubs her down quickly before mopping the mud up with the damp towel. Apache hops out of the tub, her fur still damp. 'Thank you, greatly appreciated.' Raven simply hums. She tosses the dirty towel in the black hamper that is against the wall across from the toilet.

'So, um...' Apache begins as the two leave the bathroom. 'You found a spell?'

"I did. I have all the herbs and everything else thats needed, I just have to set it up then I can turn you back." Raven glances at the dog, halting her step. "Why are you apprehensive?"

'what? Oh, um. I'm just unsure about it is all. I'm nervous about how it'll complicate everything, y'know? I can tell Robin is just itching to interogate me without a middleman.'

"Don't worry about it. I won't let him question you past what answers are actually relivent."

Apache gazes up at her with flattened ears. 'If you're sure...'

"You're free to do whatever until I get everything set up." Raven continues to her room. Apache hadn't realized how much she missed the smell of jasmine.

'Actually, I'd really like to watch a movie,' Apache says shyly, her ears set halfway pinned. Raven glances at her, a neatly trimmed eyebrow raised.

"Well... I could write you a note and you can find someone to set it up for you I suppose."

Apache's ears shoot up. 'That'd be great!'

A pen and pad of paper fly over from Raven's organized desk. She begins elegantly scrawling a note onto the top page. "Give me a first and second choice movie," Raven glances up at her.

Apache instantly becomes shy. She lowers her ears. 'Um, Oliver and Company or 101 Dalmations.'

"101 Dalmations sounds familiar, not Oliver and Company," Raven mumbles and finishes her note before ripping the top page from the pad. She hold the note infront of Apache's face. She gingerly takes it between her teeth. "I'll come get you when everything is ready."

'Thank you, Raven.'

The girl hums, shutting her door.

Apache sighs, gazing down the hallway. She's tired and would love to sleep, but her mind is on overdrive. The homey smell of the tower is comforting, and she cant deny she's glad to be back.

Then Jinx comes to mind. They'd just left her in the rain, in a puddle no less. There was nothing she could do now but hope Jinx makes it home alright. Apache doesnt know about Jinx, but she'd take a beating and being left in the rain over a beating and being thrown in jail while soaking wet any day.

Her head lowered, she meanders her way down the hall. Her ear twitches as she hears something in Beast Boy's room as she approaches. A video game or something similar.

With a sigh she scratches on the door until the sound ceases and footfalls can be heard. The door swishes open, releasing a putrid stench.

"Yeah?" Beast Boy spots her almost instantly. "Hey! Apache!" He kneels down. "Whats up?" He rubs fondly at her cheeks before grasping the note from between her teeth. "Ha! Raven wrote this, didn't she? She's got this fancy old time writting," His eyes scan the words, a thoughtful look blooming on his face. "Disney, eh?" He rises. "C'mon, mama, lets get you set up,"

Apache fallows behind him, not quite prancing, but a hop to her step nonetheless.

"Y'know, Apache? I cant wait to get to talk to you and you actually be able to speak back. Then you'll be able to laugh at all my jokes," Beast Boy confides, chuckling. Apache rolls her eyes, fondness for the teen filling her belly. "You're a pretty cool dog, so I'!l bet you're an even cooler person," He grins. Apache guesses that if she were human at this moment that her face would have been tinted red. She's glad she doesn't have to say anything at the moment. She's equally toutched as she is embarrassed, causing her to be speachless. She bumps her shoulder into the side of his leg, causing him to laugh lightly.

They turn up the flight of stairs, Apache guiltily eyeing the dried mud. The tap of her paws against carpet continues until they reach the common room door. Upon entering, they find it uncharictaristically deserted.

There was hardly ever no one in here.

"Looks like you got it all to yourself, little mama," Beast Boy goes about switching the TV to the desktop to turn one of the movies on. Apache seats herself infront of the window overlooking the city, gazing at the blurry buildings and lights through the heavy rain. The bay looks choppy, large swells accoupanying the terrible weather.

She's enjoying the sound of the tapping of water on glass and the lighting the gloom is creating. She inwardly smiles at the sound of distant thunder. It occurs to her that maybe she sould be afraid, out on a small island and so high up in a storm, but she isn't. The tower never swayed or creaked with the wind, which was always reassuring.

"Here ya are," Beast Boy says as a movie begins, rain, the sound of traffic and music sounding. "I'm gonna finish my game then I'll come watch it with ya."

Apache barks as he turns away, causing him to turn back around, and she put her right paw up in a high five gensure with a scratiching motion. Beast Boy laughs.

"You're welcome," He turns to return to his room. Apache sets her paw back down. With a sigh she hops on the couch, turning once before laying down. She gazes up at the little orange cat stuck in the rain because all of his siblings had been taken home by various people, having to dodge cars and dogs. As the movie progresses she sings along to the first song with a giggle inwardly.

This movie was one of her favorites when she was little. She'd always thought Dodger was the coolest, along with Rita. Beast Boy slides in next to her during the Roscoe and DeSoto scene, patting her head fondly. She yawns.

Now if only she had some hot chocolate and a down comforter.

Her fur is still slightly damp, and the tower is kept at a neutral temperature, like a school classroom, which is sending a chill through her body. All of the rooms have individual thermostats, but they were rarely ever toutched beside the ones in the bedrooms. She lays her head down, continuing to watch the movie. She's surprised at how quiet Beast Boy is being.

She's trying to not think about the knot in her belly and stress ricocheting through her mind and body due to Raven getting ready to turn her human just down the hall. She shifts deeper into the back of the couch, enjoyong the warmth the couch is providing to the parts of her body that are in contact with it.

The last thing she remembers is hearing Streets of Gold before she's being shaken awake. Her head snaps up instantly. She gazes around, first at the movie, which is about over, then to Beast Boy, who is looking at her curiously, and finally to Raven, who is standing behind the couch and leaning over it to look down at her.

"Are you ready?" Raven asks her after a moment. Her hood is down. Apache realizes that it hadn't been last she seen her.

Apache's ears fall back. 'As I'll ever be, I guess,' Apache's stomach is instantly twisted into painful knots. She hops off the couch, walking around it to fallow Raven out of the common room.

"Don't be so nervous, you'll be fine," Raven attempts to console her when they're in the hall.

'I can't help it, but I trust you,' Apache sighs out, a shiver running through her body. Apache feels like she's walking the death walk, like she's being taken to be executed as they head down the flight of stares.

'Promise you won't let Robin interrogate me?' Apache looks up to Raven, her stomach churning.

Raven doesn't look down. "I can't promise that, he most likely will. But I can stop him from doing it detective style or playing good cop bad cop with Vic on you."

'So you'll be my lawyer?' Apache chuckles, forgetting her anxiety for a moment.

"Sure," Raven says simply. As they turn down the hall to the bedrooms, Apache's step stalls as adrenaline shoots through her. She fallows just a step behind Raven anyway.

'I'm so afraid of whats going to happen after this,' Apache confides as butterflies flutter around her insides. Raven can feel from all of the emotion radiating off of the dog what she means.

"It'll be fine. Everything always works itself out like its supposed to," Raven attempts to calm the dog.

'I know, but I have a habbit of worrying about every little thing more than it needs to be worried about,' Apache huffs. Her stomach churns again when Raven's bedroom door slides open. As they enter, she sees that in the middle of the open space of Raven's room is what can only be described as an elaborate alchemy circle. Why she's comparing it to an anime, she has no idea, but its her only basis. It looks like a weird cross between an alchemy circle and something Wickan, with all of the candles placed strategically around the circle's borders.

She refrains from making a joke about the alchemy part.

Apache is glad she hadn't ate anything yet today. Her stomach is way too unsettled for food. She stays in places as Raven takes a seat at the side of the circle farthest away from the tallest candles. Apache can see a little dish of herbs infront of her. Raven looks up at her after a moment, motioning with her hand to the center of the circle.

Apache swallows thickly before slowly making her way over with her head lowered. She hops over the row of candles, careful to not step on the lines, which she can now see are composed of some type of salt and herbs. She sits in the center, which is a separate circle with nothing inside of it. She looks at Raven as the candles are all ignited.

"Ready?" Apache simply nods at Raven. Apache twitches her ears and closes her eyes as Raven begins chanting something in a language she's never heard before. Her voice is slow, hypnotic, monotone. A few times she chants over, and a searing pain begins to seep into Apache's joints. Raven's voice is becoming more powerful, picking up in speed slightly. When the chant changes, the ache becomes white hot pain. Apache is paralyzed. She squeezes her eyes shut tighter, the pain becoming unbearable for her. It feels as if her body is being ripped apart.

As quickly as it had all started, it stops. Raven is quiet, and the pain seeps from Apache's joints. She tentively opens her right eye, then her left, staring down at black paws. Her head whips up to gaze at Raven, confusion evident in her bi colored eyes. Raven looks just as confused. Well, as confused as Raven can look.

'It... Didn't work?' Apache projects at her.

"I... Guess not. This is strange. Usually all my spells work," Raven arches a perfectly sculpted eyebrow, still in her meditation stance.

'Should we, um, try again?' Apache hesitantly suggests, remembering the searing pain.

"No, that isn't how it works. It can be dangerous to perform the same spell twice in a row on a single being. We have to wait to try again," Raven falls out of her levitation. "We'll try again tomorrow."

Apache nods, breathing a sigh of relief. She hops out of the circle, carefully dodging the lines and candles. She has mixed feelings now, the anxiety leaving her tired body.

She looks to Raven as the girl stands. 'What if it doesn't work tomorrow either?'

"Then it doesn't work and you'll most likely stay like that," Raven tells her honestly. Apache nods. She looks at Raven's bedside clock.

'Does that say three?' She asks Raven.

"Yeah, its a little after three," Raven confirms, looking back to the dog.

Apache is quiet.

"You want to ask me something," Raven says, gazing at the uneasy and confused dog steadily. Apache shifts under her gaze, meeting her amethyst eyes with her own.

'Maybe we can have a movie night just you and me? And whoever wants to join?' Apache looks up at the girl, giving her her best puppy eyes. Raven raises an eyebrow. 'You can read or whatever,' Apache reasons, trying to be convincing.

"I suppose. What movie did you have in mind?" Raven questions with a sigh. Happiness shoots through Apache's body.

'Madagascar,' Apache chirps happily.

"Never heard of it," Raven raises her eyebrow in question.

'You haven't?' Apache sounds surprised. Either the movie doesn't exist here or Raven really hasn't heard of it.

"I'm not a big movie watcher," Raven shrugs simply.

'Right, right. I think you'll like it,' Apache gives her tail a wag. 'Wanna watch it after dinner?'

"Sure," Raven shrugs as she sits on her bed, pulling a book into her lap.

Apache sits back on her haunches, a question bubbling in her mind that she would have been too embarrassed to ask a month ago. She tilts her head as Raven opens her book to a marked page.

'Doesn't your leotard give you wedgies?' Raven's head snaps up, her eyebrows knit together as she gives Apache a hard look. Apache inwardly snickers.

"No," She gives Apache a deadpan look before returning her gaze to the ancient pages.

'Sure,' Apache snickers. Apache chooses to lay behind Raven's closed drapes to stare out at the city. The rain is still falling hard, causing the ocean below to look overly rippled. The city seems very gloomy. Her ears perk as a flash of lightning ignights over the city, momentarily lighting up everything in its path. Not a moment later thunder booms, vibrating through Apache's body. Thunder and lightning is one of her favorite things about storms. Hopefully the tower is insulated agianst lightning strikes. She'd rather not be electrocuted to death.

She watches, almost in a transe, until the sky begins to darken farther. The sun is going down. Her ears twitch when a beep sounds. Must be Raven's communicator. She pokes her head out from under the drapes to stare up at the girl. She has her communicator in hand. She types a message back before closing her communicator and setting it back on the bed.

She glances down at the dog, amusment dancing in her eyes at the sight. Not even Apache's ears have escaped the mass of curtain. "Dinner in fourty-five minutes. They ordered pizza."

'Sweet,' Apache's tail wags. 'You gotta slip me a piece. Cyborg usually does but i don't think he will now...'

"Sure, why not," Raven returns her gaze to her book. Apache huffs, pushing herself up. The curtain drapes down her sides and slides off her as she trots away from the window to hop up on Raven's bed. She plops down against Raven's back, laying her head on her paws.

"You have no concept of personal space, do you?" Raven grumbles.

'Nope. Plus you know I'm warm,' Apache teases smuggly. They sit like that in silence until Raven's communicator beeps again. At the chime, Apache is instantly up and waiting by the door for Raven before she even picks the communicator up. Raven raises an eyebrow at her.

"Hungry?"

'You bet,' Apache steadily gazes at the pretty girl.

T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.

The red haired girl stares out at the dead grass passing in waves along the California highway. She takes one last bite of her hamburger before holding the last bit behind the headrest, instantly feeling a cold nose and warm tongue against her fingers as her dog takes the remaining bit from her hand. She smiles fondly, grabbing a french fry out of the fast food bag and turning around to gaze at the medium sized black dog with a white splash on her chest as she holds the frenchfry out to her. The dog takes the fry gently, chewing contently, her bi colored eyes gazing happily at her owner, begging for more.

"You really shouldn't give her tha', it'll upset her stomach," The red haired girl turns her gaze to the older woman in the driver's seat that looks as if she's an older version of the girl, an Irish accent dancing on her tongue, her red hair a wild mess of curles, the slightest plump to her body, giving her a healthy look.

"But she likes it," the girl snickers as she turns her gaze back to the dog. "Don't ya, Ebony?" The dog just keeps on begging. The girl turns her attention back to her mother. "How much longer?"

"Casey, same as last time ya asked, we'll get there when we get there. Probably two more hours," the woman shoots the girl a hard emerald gaze. The girl groans in exaggeration before returning her gaze to the passing highway. "Don't be like tha', you're the one that wanted to go."

"Yeah, I knoow," the girl sighs. She perks up when her phone buzzes.

"Betchya tha's Jada," The woman says instantly.

"How much're ya bettin'?" The girl gives her mother a sly look.

"A chocolate milk shake," the woman says in all seriousness.

"That's lame. But yeah, its Jada," the girl grins.

"You owe me."

"Yes Mom, I'll buy you a milkshake," the girl rolls her eyes fondly before turning her gaze down to her phone.

'I miss you already,' it reads. The girl's heart flutters.

'I miss you too,' She types back. 'I love you.'

'I love you too. Be safe and I'll see you when you get back.'

'I always am safe.' she completes her message with a heart emoji.

"Tell her I said hi," The girl's mother says as she fiddles with the radio.

The girl chuckles lightly. 'And my mom says hi.'

'Hello to you too Ms Byrne,' the girl cackles.

"What?" her mother asks.

"She says hello to you too," They fall into a comfortable silence, watching the highway go by, a few cars scattered here and there.

"What is this idiot doin'?" catches the girl's attention. She flips her gaze to see a white truck towering over their little Chevy. Whoever is in the truck is getting too close for comfort. The dog in the back seat, sensing the sudden tension, gives a whine as she shifts, pawing at the back of her young owner's seat. The girl holds her hand behind her headrest, instantly feeling a chin in her palm. She rubs calmingly at her dog's chin as her mother speeds the car up, the truck fallowing suit. The woman can see the black dog in the rearview mirror as she glances at it, the dog's irrect ears flat against her head.

Adrenaline jumps through the girl's body. "What's goin' on?"

"I don't know," her mother replys, slowing the car. The truck again fallows not a moment later. When her mother speeds the car up again, the truck lets them go. The girl breaths a sigh of relief, until she feels the car begin to spin. The truck had rammed the rear part of their car. She feels her dog's chin leave her hand.

"Ebony?!" their car tilts, flying through open air. "MOAAAH" screams irrupt within the car, and cut off as it hits the bottom of the pit below the highway.

The girl lays stunned, face down on the grass. Red tints her vision, her eyes stinging like salt had been poured in them. As she shifts, she feels something in her side pull. She ceaces her attempts to lift herself, opting to lift her head.

Ten feet away is a heap of black fur. The girl tries to call her name, but nothing escapes her throat. Her dog lays still. Her eyes search for her mother but she doesn't see her. As her eyes fall on her unmoving dog again, her vision goes black.

Her eyes snap open again, a filthy alley surrounding her.

An unheard before voice wails through the tower, long and painfilled, blood curdling.

The girl can feel the warmth of someone's lap under her face. She pushes up and away, panic wailing through her body as she freefalls before hitting carpetted floor on her bare back. She pushes herself up, blindly gazing around the familiar common room. She sobs out.

Before she can stop herself, her stomach wretches.

She throws up half digested pizza.


	11. To Live Life

Sorry for the wait guys, things have been buisy. Heres a new chapter, though!

Huge thank yous to all my readers and reviewers! You guys are awesome!

Enjoy!

... ... ... ... ...

The girl is shaking violently, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. She feels her stomach lurch again, and in response she clamps her jaw tightly shut. A sob bubbles in her throat, and she can't hold it in.

She jumps at the feeling of heavy and smooth fabric being draped over her bare body.

"Apache?" A very familiar voice asks quietly. She nods stiffly. She hears the common room door swish open, accoumpanied by a thundering of feet.

"What was that?" Apache sobs. Please, he's the last person she wants to see right now.

"Whos, is that Apache?" Beast Boy. She'd be okay with him. She just wants to be alone, though. She feels an arm drape over her back. She can't hold back the sob in her throat.

"What is the matter, friend?" a gentle voice coos at her. She wails out something incomprehensible between sobs. "You will have to repeat yourself, I do not think any of us understood."

"My moooooooom," she wails. "Ebonyyy, they're deeeeaaaad," she breaks down in nasty body wracking sobs, burrying her face in Star's lap. "Ra-r-raaan us off the roaaaad," She feels a different, slender and light hand on her back, rubbing small circles. Everyone is quiet as she sobs, the two female Titans consoling her to the best of their ability. She feels another presence kneel next to her on her open side next to Raven, a third hand joining the others, this one on her upper back above Star's arm.

She doesn't know how long she sobs, but she sits there until her throat is raw and her eyes burn. Her sobs slowly taper off, her tears running out. Her head is swimming, her body aching. Star's arm becomes tighter around her, comforting. She in turn wraps one of her arms around the Tamaranian's slender waist.

Pull yourself together, she chastises herself. Some first impression you're making.

She slowly sits up, sniffling. She glances around, her eyes swollen and red, her usually pale face blotchy. Her wavy mid back length red hair sticks to her face and is in horrendous knotts. She only now realizes its Raven's cloak draped around her.

She first meets two sets of green worry filled but kind and open eyes. Her eyes land on a cloakless girl next, her expression masked and unreadable, yet she bares a coffee mug. She gently hands the warm mug to the destraught girl. She recognizes the smell of the substance, hot chocolate. She had wanted a cup. She projects a thank you to the pretty girl, not trusting her voice. The girl simply gives a nod.

She tentively shifts her eyes without much movement of her head off to the side. Leaning on the couch is the two other Titans, their arms crossed, their expressions anything but pleased. She quickly shifts her gaze back to Raven, panic rising in those bi colored depths. Raven simply blinks at her, her hands folded in her lap. Suddenly the girl feels comfort swell inside of her. She tilts her head the slightest bit in question at the girl. Her amethyst eyes flash for a moment, and the girl knows it was her. All the girl can do is project her gratitude to the dark Titan.

She leans into Star's side as carpet muffled foot falls make their way over to the dual purpose TV, promptly switching the movie that is playing off and switching the desktop on.

"First things first," Robin begins as he types away at the keyboard. "I need your full name, social security number, birth date and one of your parent's full names," He does not sound pleased, his posture tense.

"Can't that wait for another time?" Raven instantly speaks up before anyone else has a chance to.

"This, no. Everything else, yes. So...?" Robin's voice holds an edge to it that the girl does not like in the slightest. She feels more tears well in her eyes.

She's quiet for a moment, steeling herself. "C..." her voice wobbles. "Ca..." Her voice cracks. A hand rubs her back as Star's arm tightens further. She shuts her eyes, taking a tentive sip of the warm substance craddled in her hands to push the lump in her throat away. She gulps in a huge breath of air, before releasing it slowly through her nose.

"Casey Autumn Byrne, February second 1999, 987-37-9807, Janette Anne Byrne," the Titans are surprised at the faded Irish accent that rolles off her tongue, as if she had lived in Ireland, yet the accent had faded after living amoung Americans for years. Casey sinks farther into Star when the Titans all look at her strangely. She glances at them shyly and confused.

"How old are you?" Beast Boy asks quietly, his hand still on her back.

"I-I'm e-eighteen now? Its February isn't it...?" Her voice drips with uncertainty.

"It's 2010, you can't be eighteen," Cyborg quips, his voice dangerous.

"No, but, it was 2017. I was getting ready to graduate and everything! I was even supposed to be going to Cal Poly in the fall!" the girl is borderline wailing again. Star shushes her, wrapping her other arm around her waist.

"So a time jump, too then?" Beast Boy sounds contemplative as he puts his free hand in a fist to his chin. She lifts her eyes to Raven in panic. The girl just gives her a level amethyst gaze. Robin sighs heavily, tapping away at the keyboard.

"I need your mother's maiden name," Robin gives Casey a raised eyebrowed glance.

"Th-that is h-her maiden name," Her voice wobbles.

"What's the last diget to your social?"

"That is my full social," She can feel herself beginning to break down again.

"Spell your last name for me," Her voice wobbles as she spells it out. The lump is full force back, tears escape her eyes. She takes a sip of her hot chocolate to calm herself as her stomach rolls dangerously. She glances guiltily to the vomit on the otherwise grey carpet. She'd have to clean it up as soon as possible.

"I can't find any matching or similar records," Robin says after awhile. The girl doesn't expect any different. She simply stares at Raven's folded hands, focusing on the warmth craddled in her own hands.

"Apache," her head snaps up. Robin had called Casey multiple times, yet she hadn't reacted. He raises an eyebrow at her. "Until we get everything straightened out, you're under probation, understood?" She nods. "I'll be asking you questions soon, so be prepared to answer them," she nods again. With a sigh the Boy Wonder strides out of the common room.

"What a night, eh, Casey?" Beast Boy tries to lighten the atmosphere.

"Just call me Apache, please," she says quietly. "I don't want to have to relearn my real name right now."

Beast Boy nods solemnly, glancing out the window to the darkened bay.

"I'm really sorry," she says even quieter, yet her voice still carries in the silence. Its making her ears ring. She can't stand complete silence.

"For what are you the sorry for?" Star asks her curiously. All eyes are on her. She simply stares at the glass mug in her hands.

"For being such a nuisance and compromising you all," she says just as quiet, refusing to lift her eyes. She feels sick.

"You're not a nuisance, its been fun having you around," Beast Boy punches her lightly and playfully.

"I do agree, it has been very pleasurable," Star smiles at her kindly and openly.

"That was when I was a dog," she reminds them.

"So? It'll be just as fun now. I mean, you did get me a girlfriend," Beast Boy beams at her.

Apache huffs out a small broken laugh. "Yeah."

They fall silent.

"So, Cal Poly, huh? You must be really smart," Beast Boy says after a moment.

"Not really," Apache says quietly. "I'm just an over achiever and want to be a livestock vet, and Cal Poly was the closest school to Yuba City with a vet program. Has nothing to do with smartness," she explains. Beast Boy yawms.

"Well, I'm gonna go back to bed. See ya all in the morning," He stands with a stretch, meandering toward the door. Cyborg follows without a word.

Apache's eyes fall on the puddle of vomit again. She wants to take a shower, then clean it up.

Her first shower in months. She's going to really enjoy it.

Her eyes slowly travel up to find Raven's face. "Would it be possible for me to take a shower?" her voice refuses to raise past a whisper. The lump is still forcefully wedged in her throat, causing it to be difficult for her to speak. Raven simply nods as their eyes meet.

Apache hugs Star loosely around her thin waist. "Thank you, you really are just a wonderful person."

Star gladly embraces her back. "It is no trouble at all, friend," She sounds delighted. She releases Apache, instantly floating into the air.

"See you tomorrow, yeah?" Apache gazes up at her.

"Yes, good night," Star zooms over to the common room door, her feet toutching carpet before she goes through, leaving just Apache and Raven.

After a few moments, Apache's eyes meet Raven's.

"Well, hello for real this time," she says quietly, her eyes almost lame and dull looking. They don't have the light that they used to have.

"Yeah," Raven slowly rises to her feet. "Come on."

Apache slowly rises in a wobbly fasion, her legs like jello. She isn't used to walking on two legs. She can feel herself falling apart, but she does her best to keep it together. As she clumsily hobbles after the girl, her cloak still draped around her own shoulders, she gazes curiously around the common room and the hall as they go. Before leaving the common room she had darted over as quickly as she could and set her cup on the counter before following Raven. She'd had a dog's eye view of the tower, so it actually looks a bit different from her added height.

She'd never seen the stacks of filthy dishes in the sink before now, not that she is surprised to see them.

It ignights her mothers words in her head, a nagging feeling to get them clean itching at her. She feels a little lost, unsure what to do. Being a dog and not knowing allowed her to try to figure things out and problem solve, and it had worked to an extent. Maybe not knowing would have been a blessing to her.

Her eyes fall on Raven's back, not hidden by a cloak. She isn't much taller than the girl, she realizes. She's five-foot three, so Raven must be around five-foot one or two.

They're both short.

She's sure her cheeks flush pink as she averts her eyes from where they shouldn't be to begin with. Raven's hourglass figure is just gorgeous to Apache. The leotard is flattering, but Apache would prefer the cloak stay on so people wouldn't be able to stare at her backside.

Hypocrite, she thinks.

She hobbles down the flight of stairs a few steps behind Raven, having to keep her hand on the wall to keep her balance as she descends. Her foot audibly pops as she puts her weight on it, startling her slightly. She looks down wide eyed for a moment, before continuing down the last few steps.

The Walk to the bathroom is uneventful and silent, the silence causing Apache's ears to ring. She takes a silent deep breath, exhaling slowly.

Raven being so wraith like is slightly unsettling to Apache simply due to the silence. Silence she could do without.

Her mom did always say she'd make the poorest dead person because she couldn't handle silence all that well.

Raven pulls the bathroom door open, motioning for Apache to enter first. She slips by Raven awkwardly, her hands fisted at her chest in the cloak draped over her otherwise bare body.

"Towels are in that drawer," Raven points to the lowest drawer on the cabinet. "Wash cloths are in the drawer above it. Just put everything in the hamper when you're done and I'll have some clothes for you set by the door. Just come to my room when you're done."

Apache nods. "Thank you," she says quietly. With a nod, Raven shuts the door, heading back to her room. Apache simply gazes at the door for a moment, then gives a heavy sigh. Brown catches her eye in the mirror as she goes to grab a towel and wash cloth. She stares wide eyed at her reflection.

Bi colors stare back at her, shocked.

Those aren't her eyes.

Those are Ebony's eyes.

Her eyes are a shade of emerald.

Tears well in her wide eyes, one shinning aquamarine that contrasts heavily with the gold colored brown.

One of the last things she remembers is the confusion reflected in these same bi colored eyes.

Her stomach lurches. These aren't her eyes.

They belong to the one creature in her universe that held her together mentally and emotionally through the worst times in her life.

A blotchy, thin and bruised face surrounds those bi colors, plump lips slightly parted in shock. Red wavy hair is knotted together and wild, as if it hadn't been brushed in weeks. She doesn't remember being this thin.

She's disturbed, she feels as if she doesn't know who she is anymore.

Pulling her eyes away from the bi colored ones in the mirror, she drops the navy cloak into the hamper. She grabs a towel and washcloth as tears stream down her cheeks. She unfolds the violet towel and tosses it over to hang on the curtain rod for easy reach.

She switches the water on, crossing her arms over her chest as she waits for the water to warm. She hums lightly to herself until steam begins billowing from the water. She adjusts the water temperature before stepping under the scalding spray. She slowly falls to her knees as the water runs down her chilled body, burning her bruised and overly pale skin. She wraps her arms around her knees as she pulls them to her chest.

She cries, her head laid on her knees. Shes able to keep her sobs quiet at least. Before she knows it, she's curled up under the spray, the water pelting her side. It feels sore, yet she ignores it.

She realizes that she shouldn't even be alive. She doesn't know how this works, but she's certain when people die they're not supposed to go crashing into another dimention. Where's her mom? And Ebony? This isn't heaven to her without Ebony, if that's what its supposed to be.

She'd rather be in limbo if that meant she could always have Ebony with her.

Are they here somewhere? Did they go to heaven or hell? Is death just really nothingness and thats what happened? So many questions, and she's not being thrown any answers.

It takes awhile, but she's able to finally pull herself together. She sits up with a sniffle, gazing around the shower. In the corner of the tub by the spout for the bath tub are two bottles, one shampoo and the other conditioner. Theres a white bar of soap next to them.

She slowly grasps the shampoo bottle, depositing a small amount on her palm from the bottle before lathering it in her hair. Her fingers catch and pull in knots, her short nails lightly scratching her scalp. Her hair had been greasy. She forgot how much she loves her hair being clean.

Her eyes are closed lightly, and they sting from the crying. She yawns as she rinses her hair out. Her movements are sluggish, uncaring.

She slowly lathers conditioner into her unruly locks, twisting her hair loosely around her head. She needs a hair cut soon, she decides.

All she can think about is Ebony and her mother as she washes her face and body. What became of them? Her mom, if there really is a heaven, its up in the air if that's where she went due to some of her choices from when she was young. She is a good person nonetheless, so Apache would like to think that God, if there is one, would take mercy on her. She chastizes herself. Her mom might not even be dead. She needs to stop thinking before she gets herself so worked up she can't function. A panic attack is the last thing she needs right now, and she can feel one building in her chest.

She's surprised at the dirt that comes off of her. Her pale skin had actually been slightly dingey with a dusting of dirt over it. She twists lightly in the water, rinsing the suds from her body. She slumps back down as she rinses the conditioner from her hair, leaving her red and knotted locks feeling silky under the hot water.

She's noticed her nose isn't quite as sensitive as ut had been, and this bothers her slightly. What if the shadow comes back? What if she isn't able to smell it like the others seem to not be able to?

She sighs, deciding to quit wasting the Titan's water.

She shivers at the chill that overtakes her body when she switches the water off. She wants to just sit where she is, but she knows it probably isn't a good idea. She's taken long enough, and she doesn't even know what time it is.

She slowly pulls herself up, wringing her hair out then grabbing the towel. It falls over her face, and she sighs. She slowly towels herself off, lightly scrubbing at her sopping wet hair before stepping out of the tub and onto the cold tile. She puts the towel and washcloth in the black hamper after she wrings the excess water from the washcloth.

She opens the bathroom door slowly, her eyes searching the grey carpet. Theres a small pile of folded navy clothes just off to the side. She bends down and picks them up, shutting the door to dress herself.

She sets the clothes on the counter as she inspects them. No underwear, but thats to be expected. She wouldn't have worn someone else's underwear anyway.

As she unfolds the size too big navy T-shirt, she almost snorts at the "Sarcasm Queen" in white block letters on the front of the shirt. She slips it on before slipping on the black and navy stripped pajama bottoms that go down to her ankles.

Steeling herself, she pulls the bathroom door open and slowly slinks down the empty hall to the familiar door. She knocks lightly, two taps. The door slides open and she slowly and cautiously enters. She spots Raven on her bed, floating an a metatative stance. As familiar as ever. She lightly steps over the soft carpet, seating herself to lean against the side of Raven's bed, her hands fisting in the pajama pants over her thighs.

Jinx pops into her mind next. She has questions but she's afraid to ask them. Thinking about Jinx is easier than thinking about her mom and dog for sure. Guilt and sickness rolls around her belly.

"Just ask, it isn't that scary," Raven voices, causing Apache to jump. She really radiates her emotions that much? Or maybe Raven is just choosing to be so perceptive to her. She sighs.

"A-" her voice cracks, and she clears her throat. "About Jinx," she says tentively.

"What about her?" Apache can't see Raven.

"Is the Academy still under Blood's control?"

"What are you getting at?"

"Is Jinx still brainwashed?" Raven hums in realization.

"No. We took Blood out and he ran. We think he ran to Gotham but we haven't had the information to chase him. Richard informed Batman and he's been keeping a lookout." Apache makes a surprised sound.

"Thats different than the cartoon, that didn't happen until after Trigon," Apache pulls herself onto her knees, gazing up at the girl seated in the center of her large bed. "Is the Academy still going?"

"It did resurface a few months after we thought we took it out. It's got a new headmaster. We've been keeping an eye on it, so far they haven't made any moves," Raven gazes at her.

"Huh..." Apache looks down to her fingers laying on top of the black comforter.

"Why do you ask?" Raven's monotone surprises the girl slightly.

"No reason, I just recalled her being brainwashed and I wanted to know. Plus I was afraid the entire time Blood was gonna show up or something," Apache shrugs.

Raven huffs in amusment. "No."

Apache gazes at Raven's bedside clock. Three about? Its still dark out.

"I'm sorry you lost your family," Raven's words surprise Apache, and she switches her gaze back to the girl, bi colors meeting amethyst. She didn't think Raven was sentimental.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," she says, the slightest hint of confusion peppering her tone.

"Its a horrible feeling, to lose people close to you. I know, and I've felt it. You had no control over it though, so you should stop blaming yourself. Nothing good will come of it," Raven's words cause the air to catch in Apache's throat. All the girl can do is gaze at her dumbly. She isn't used to someone being able to percieve how she feels. Her mothers words play on repeat in her mind.

Everything happens for a reason.

All Apache can do is nod, wide eyes gazing into pools of amethyst. She sighs, lowering her gaze. Say anything, change the subject, diversion, anything, she gripes to herself.

"So, what's gonna happen with rooms?" Apache says shakily after a long moment.

"Well, you can have a guest room, but you'll be recorded 24/7 until Robin trusts you. Every room in the tower has survalence, but it isn't checked unless it needs to be," Raven informs. Apache's stomach rolls sickly. "Theres an inflatable matress in the utility closet for tonight, though."

Apache nods, sighing in relief. She follows Raven as she floats out of her room and down the hall, the girl dressed in a plain black T shirt and dark grey sweats that go mid calf on her, her arms crossed loosely. Its highly amusing to Apache to watch her float.

They retrieve the box containing the matress from the utility closet on the floor below the one they're on, moving silently through the halls.

"Little adventure," Apache quips when they're almost back to Raven's room. Raven hums, her arms loaded down with the heavy rubber filled box.

"Why do you let me hang out in here and no one else?" Apache says off handedly as they unfold the matress.

"You don't toutch everything you lay your eyes on and you're quiet and calm, they aren't," Raven says simply. A small sliver of warmth blooms in Apache's stomach, like a dog being given a bone. They sit in silence as the air pump roars noisily to life, doing its job to inflate the matress.

Apache watches curiously as Raven pulls herself to her feet, approaching her desk. She grabs something from the top of it before turning around to walk back toward Apache. She tosses what is in her hand at the girl. She reflexively snatches it out of the air.

Its a hairbrush. She immediately grasps her knotted hair, brushing the ends out first, slowly making her way to her scalp. She's only half done with her hair when the matress is full of air. Raven switches the airpump off, setting it against the wall with the matress's box.

"Your hair is a mess," Raven comments as she seats herself on her bed.

"The beauties of having slightly curly hair," Apache quips, wincing as a knot carches in the brush and pulls some of her hair out. "Its nowhere as curly as my mom's. Can you cut hair?" she asks, wondering if Raven does in fact cut her own hair.

"Well, I CAN, but that doesn't mean I'm good at it," Raven shrugs.

"Would you cut mine? I don't care if its uneven," Apache pulls the brush forcefully through some knots in her hair.

"Right now?"

"No, I mean like soon. My hair is getting too long for me, and I'd appreciate if you'd cut it for me," Apache quips.

"I guess," Raven answers her. "But it isn't my fault if you don't like the result. That's my disclaimer and your warning."

"I'm fine with anything," Apache shrugs, working on the last bit of her hair. Her hair is now flowing silkily, twisting around itself in a gorgeous fashion, all frizz and knots done away with.

"So you'd be fine with it if I shaved your head?" Raven asks her.

"Well, no," Apache lowers the brush to gaze up at the girl.

"Then you're not fine with anything," Apache rolls her eyes playfully.

Apache slowly strides over to Raven's desk to place the brush back in its place, lightly stepping over the grey carpet. She crawls onto the blow up matress, enjoying the smell of the thick plastic, like a new swimming pool before its been filled.

She lays down on her belly with a sigh, folding her arms under her head. A square of folded fabric floats its way from Raven's closet, enveloped in black energy. It plops down next to the red haired girl.

"Thank you," Apache voices lightly, flipping onto her back to pull the soft and fluffy dark brown blanket out with her hands and feet. Raven just humms as the various candles around the room extinguish.

Apache twists herself up in the blanket, using a portion of it for a pillow. She sighs contently as Raven slides herself under her own blankets.

Apache can't help but miss laying next to Raven. She misses the presence of another body next to her when she sleeps, not used to being alone. She stares at the wall with half lidded eyes, wishing she could still cuddle up next to Raven.

She misses her dog. They'd always lay back to back when they went to sleep, and she'd still be there next to her when she woke up. That dog means the world to her. She was there when everyone else wasn't.

Her chest aches when she thinks of her father.

She hasn't thought about him in years, with good reason.

Disowning her because she's gay, and before that he was highly abusive. She decides to brush him aside like she's done before. Hopefully its five more years or more before she even spares him another thought, if ever.

She listens to Raven's breathing, noticing when it evens out and becomes more shallow. She tosses and turns, unable to close her eyes. Her body is exhausted, yet her mind is running on overdrive. On nights like these, she'd usually take some cold medicine so she wouldn't sleep through class the next day. She wouldn't even know where to find cold medicine in the tower, so she decides to not even try lest someone think she's snooping.

What would her mom say? She'd say... Apache yawns. She'd probably say "Casey, ya just need ta disreguard everything unimportant and close those eyes o' yers."

She smiles lightly. Her mom is really something else. She's more of a "just live your life with no worries" type of person.

After turning herself over for the umpteenth time, she sighs. She quietly pushes herself up and glances at Raven as she throws the blanket off of herself. The girl seems to be fast asleep. She winces when the bed squeaks under her weight.

She tip toes toward Raven's door, pushing the button for it to open. She sneaks down the hall silently, stepping lightly. The only sound that would alert anyone to her presence is her light breathing.

She sneaks down the hall like a frightened mouse, looking both ways as she darts up the flight of stares to the common room. She faintly wonders if Robin would allow her to get a pet after she passes all of his tests or whatever.

She glances around the darkened common room.

It looks empty.

She inches through the door the rest of the way, gazing around the dark space before fliping the lights on.

Her first stop is the kitchen.

She pads over the carpet lightly before stepping onto linolium. Where would cleaners be kept?

She checks the cabinet under the sink, glad to find numerous cleaners, sponges, scrub brushes and a small bucket. She has to move numerous filthy dishes and place them on the counter to reach the faucet. It seems like every dish in the tower is dirty.

She runs the water until it gets warm, to which she fills the bucket half way. She pours a small amount of Pinesol into the bucket as well, tossing a blue and white scrub brush into the water.

Grabbing some paper towels off the roll that is sitting on top of the microwave, she slowly makes her way over to the couch, walking around to its front and kneeling beside the dark spot on the carpet.

She gets as much as she can with the paper towels, ensuring she wraps it up in a way that it wont get on the carpet she sets the paper towels on. She grabs the scrub brush from the bucket, and begins scrubbing the carpet. She scrubs it this way and that until she can't see the stain anymore.

She picks everything up, making her way back to the kitchen.

She tosses the paper towels in the trash and sets the bucket on the counter off to the side.

She sings to herself as she begins piling dirty dishes from the sink onto the counters until the sink is empty.

"Swing left, swing right, bruised and black eyed," this song had gotten her through tough times just as much as Ebony had. She'd memorized every lyric.

She runs hot water as she pulls a fresh sponge from the cabinet, dumping dish soap into the food crusted sink.

"Half a life, bleeding, choking but not broken, inside," She scrubs at the sink with the scrubbing side if the sponge. She decides she needs to get the brush to finish the job.

"And in this world of compromise I hit every curb, every red light, trying to keep both hands on the wheel," the brush is working quite a bit better than the sponge had. She rinses the sink, plugging one side to fill with hot water. She places the worst dishes in the sink to soak. She rumages through various drawers to try to find dish towels, and hums when she finds them. She pulls two out and lays them on the empty side of the counter.

"But through it all I'm still undefeated, with my back against the ropes, still undefeated, you can knock me down with mighty blows but you cannot break my hope," She begins washing each dish by hand, the cleaner ones being easy. She places them one by one onto the dish towels.

"Weak knees, can't stand, raise up, your hands, don't walk away, been sucker punched but I'm not down, my feet have never left the ground, it's a fight that I can't fix, like a cut that needs a stitch, and somehow through it all I stay," It continues on, Apache singing various songs and pieces of songs that she remembers to fill the silence.

She goes over and over, washing each dish until one side of the counter is clear and the other is full of dishes neatly piled on one another, glistening. She moves onto the soaking dishes, having a much easier time with them since they soaked. She sighs as she washes the final spoon, setting it on top of the large pile of silverware. She drains the sink and washes it, setting the sponge down on the counter.

She lowers herself to her knees, then onto her side. She finally feels as if she can sleep. Tears slip from her eyes as she gazes at the white cabinets. She just wants to hug her mother.

She can't lay here, even if she feels as though she doesn't have the energy to move. The fear of Robin or Cyborg finding her here overrules her tiredness.

She pulls herself up, sluggishly dragging her feet as she walks back to Raven's room, flipping the common room lights back off. The lit halls are almost too bright on her aching eyes.

It seems as if it takes her longer than it should have to get back to Raven's room, but she eventually makes it. She sneaks back through the door, wearily gazing at Raven for signs of life.

She seems to still be out.

Apache rubs her eyes tiredly with the heels of her hands, stepping lightly and slowly back to the inflatable bed that sits on the left hand side of Raven's bed. She climbs back on it as quietly as she can, again wrapping herself up in the blanket. She barely has time to register the warmth of the fabric before her mind shuts off and she falls into a restless and dreamless sleep.

... ... ... ... ...

Im curious, who has figured out the connection between Apache's dog form and Ebony?

I already miss dog Apache. We'll be seeing her dog form again, so no worries!

Slow chapter, but things start to pick up again next chapter. :)

See you guys then! In the meantime, drop me a comment, i love feedback!

Song: Undefeated - Daughtry (obviously I do not own)


	12. Beginning of the End

Hey guys, so sorry for the wait. If you couldnt tell I started writting this on Valentines Day thinking I'd have it done by the next Monday then things got busy and I fell back into my old Transformers craze then I just HAD to go BACK and reread a fic called Synergy (which is amazing btw) that I found and read my freshman year of highschool (I feel so old, getting ready to graduate now) then the only other Transformers fic I still follow ( What Once Was Lost, which is a total heartstrings puller and sucks you in from chapter one) started back up again after six months of hiatus and I got pumped for that so I went back and reread all my favorite chapters. You guys have no idea how hard it was for me to pound this chapter out with Transformers on the mind. Too bad I don't have a good idea for a fic. And you guys have NO idea how badly I want to read a well written Sides/Raven/Sunny fanfic. It would be really interesting in their dynamic cause I think Raven's dry humor and Sunstreaker's anger and ego could cause a lot of problems in the beginning in the way of they would always be grating on eachothers nerves and Sides would be there as the comedic relief as usual. I have no clue how they would grow on eachother enough to date. So of course it would need to be a slowburn over a few year time frame at least. Yeah, its been a mess. But enough of my excuses, enjoy!

... ... ... ... ...

Apache's eyes blink open slowly to shadows, light barely peeking through Raven's curtains. She sighs quietly, her red hair hanging over her eyes like a veil. She lifts her head slowly after blankly staring for a few moments when all she is greated with is silence.

She's startled when a voice says "Richard wants to speak to you," quietly.

Apache's eyes fall on Raven where she sits in the center of her bed with a book in her lap.

"Why?" her voice is thick and cracks with sleep.

"You washed the dishes," Raven says simply.

"He's really butt hurt over that?" She grumbles in reply. "I'm not talkin' to 'im. He can watch the survalence if he thinks I did anything else but wash those damn dishes. The fridge probably needs cleaning too."

"He's probably mad that you didn't have supervision."

"Are you jokin'? You already said the entire damn tower has survalence."

"When he says something, and in your case that being that you're under strict probation, he expects it to be followed. Why do you think Roy and Wally call him Dick?"

Apache breaks down in nerve wracked cackles. She's silenced by a loud knock on Raven's door.

"Raven? I've got something for you and Apache," Its Beast Boy. Apache quirks an eyebrow in question, turning her gaze to Raven. Raven motions to the door. Apache in turn rolls off the bed and pushes herself up, delicately gliding over the soft carpet. She places her hand on the door, pulling it open manually just slightly, framing her face as she gazes out at Beast Boy.

"Hey, you're awake! Are you feelin' better?" Beast Boy asks, his eyes alight and his hands behind his back.

"Little bit," she smiles lightly.

"Thats good. Well," he pulls two red heart shaped packages from behind his back, a grin going from ear to ear as he happily presents the gifts. "Happy Valentine's Day."

Apache is shocked. "Valentine's Day?"

"Yeah," Beast Boy grins. "I thought I'd get you, Raven and Kori a little something before I go chill with Nicole."

Apache delicately takes the boxes of chocolate from the boy's gloved hands.

"How sweet of you," Apache provides, her eyes wide. "Thank you."

"Not a problem. See you guys tonight," He smiles, turning to head down the hall.

"Hey!" Apache calls. "Don't tell Robin I'm awake."

"Sure thing," Beast Boy waves. Apache closes the door, gazing down in awe at the packages of candy. She'd never gotten anything like this until she was with Jada. Beast Boy really is a sweetheart.

Apache glides over the carpet, handing Raven's package to her before plopping back down on the blow up matress. The girl takes the package delicately, instantly pulling the top off to inspect the candy within. Apache watches in amusment as she picks up one of the pieces, popping it into her mouth before setting the box on her bed.

"Is he always like this?"

Raven hums. "Usually. He even gives everyone a string of plastic four leaf clover necklaces on Saint Patrick's Day."

"How sweet of him," Apache smiles lightly.

Raven hums in agreement.

Apache lets her eyes drift to Raven's clock. Both hands are pointed upward, the bigger one just past the five. Her eyes blow wide. "Its past noon?" Apache looks to Raven. She just hums.

"I didn't want to wake you and I really wasn't going to after Richard was out there fuming this morning about you being in the common room unattended," she flips the page in the book. "Which I don't really understand becuase no one else wants to keep up with the dishes."

"Hm," Apache hums, staring down at her hands. She decides to take a look at the chocolate, pulling the top off of the box. She picks up a dark chocolate piece, puncturing it slightly with her thumb nail. She's delighted to see pink filling, and gladly bites into the strawberry flavored candy.

"I'd love Beast Boy forever if he got me chocolate covered strawberries," Apache informs through a full mouth, covering her mouth with her hand.

"I think that's what he got Nicole. I seen a box of them on the counter this morning," Raven provides.

"What? How dare he," Apache says in a joking blasphemous tone. She sighs, falling back on the bed and stretching herself out, staring at the cieling.

She jumps as the alarm blares through the tower. She bolts up to look questioningly at Raven, nearly slipping off the matress.

"You staying or going?" Raven questions as she slides off her bed, pulling her hood up and glancing at Apache.

"Um, I'll go," Apache stands. Raven holds her hand out, and Apache grasps it delicately. Her hands are soft and slender, a chill to them. They feel like ice against Apache's warm digets.

A familiar tingle overtakes Apache's body before carpet is once again under foot. Her head swims for a moment. She focuses on Cyborg at the computer already as she releases Raven's hand. She turns her attention to the common room door as Star glides through to land next to Apache, Robin not far behind.

"Cardiac," Apache wrinkles her nose at the name. No thank you. "At the park on Central," Cyborg turns around to glance at Robin. "We shouldn't need BB."

Robin nods. They turn their attention to Raven. Last time Cardiac had been at that park three years ago Raven had had a white cloak and was using black magic. Raven's expression is even more guarded than usual.

"What are you all looking at? Lets get going," Raven glides out of the common room.

"You," Apache is startled at Robin's tone and pointed at her finger. "Don't leave this room."

Apache nods stiffly, melancholy bubbling in her gut. She salutes sarcastically. "Aye aye."

She glares after the remaining Titans as they rush from the room. She rolls her eyes with a sigh, collapsing on the worn carpet and splaying herself out. She stares up dimly at the grey cieling, blinking lazily. As thoughts bombard her mind in the silence, tears well in her eyes.

"You wait, wanting this world to let you in, and you stand there, a frozen light in dark and empty streets, you smile hiding behind a God-given face, but I know you're so much more, everything they ignore, is all that I need to see," She sings to herself quietly, her eyes drifting close.

She bolts up at the swish that sounds through the room, accompanied with heavy footfalls. She rubs her eyes, daring to peek at the four Titans that appear to not have a scratch on them.

"We have a lot to discuss," Robins eyes instantly fall on her behind his mask.

"If its about me doin the dishes you can cut it, I did nothing wrong, I didn't even touch your computer," Apache says venemously.

"We're starting with Jinx," Robin's face is steel, no emotion. Apache feels as if her stomach bottoms out, hitting her toes. She doesn't have the energy to stand, so she simply glares up at the head Titan. "Where is the H.I.V.E.'s hideout?"

Apache inwardly growls. Right where she didn't want to dwell. She isn't giving that up. She hopes Raven will tell Robin she's telling the truth when he asks. She has a reason, and Raven had already let Jinx go on a whim that Apache was even believable. She had gained Raven's trust almost too quickly, and is causes suspicion to rise in her gut. She had thought Raven was the most untrusting of the Titans, yet Raven trusts her the most. She isn't exactly like cartoon Raven. This Raven is more trusting, a little more open. Granted she's amazing at hiding her emotions and still has that dry humor about her and is easily irritated and grouchy, but she's simply just way more trusting.

Raven seems like one if those people that love hard, meaning that once she sees you're no threat and she sees you as a friend, you have her trust entirely until you've given her a reason not to. Apache suspects it might have something to do with craving acceptance, as most of her life she's been shunned and rejected. People that accept her like Apache and the other Titans do are most likely hard to come by.

Her stomach gives a twinge at Raven trusting her enough to do what she's doing. Robin isn't giving her even a centimeter of slack, and Cyborg hasn't so much as spoken to her since everything came out. And Raven is over here letting bad guys go and taking Apache's words to heart.

Raven is a very smart girl, Apache knows this. She most likely only trusts her like this because she can feel Apache's every feeling, hear every thought if she so wishes. She knows Apache only wants to help, knows she has no malicious intent. And Apache knows she's been probed more by Raven then Terra ever had been. The Titans had pretty much trusted Terra from day one, and that had backfired. Apache is paying the price now for Terra's actions.

"You don't even know if thats where she took me," she growls, her eyes unblinking as she looks dangerously up at him through her eye lashes.

"We have eyes in the Academy, we know she didn't take you there," Robin growls with a challege.

"She knocked me out, I wasn't awake until we got there and she took too many different streets when we went on that walk for me to remember exactly where it is," Apache praises herself as this half baked excuse glides off her tongue effortlessly. She isn't the best liar, but she can make due when she needs to.

Robin glares down at her, unconvinced. "What did you tell her about us?"

"Nothing, as far as she knew I was a real dog," Apache doesn't miss a beat.

"Where is the hideout?"

Apache feels irritation bubble over.

"You already asked me that, twat," Apache snaps, crossing her arms.

Robin's body tenses in anger. "No," his voice is low, dangerous. "What type of building."

Building? Apache could answer that. She didn't have to tell them the lair is underground.

"A warehouse," She says lowly.

"Did you find out a name?" Robin's voice is still low.

"No. She only goes by Jinx as far as I know," Apache is technically telling the truth. She didn't know if Maya was her real name or an alias. "Now, I have the right to remain silent under the constitution, and you are not law enforcement, so I am choosing to remain silent until I am confident I won't deck your sorry ass in the face," Apache growls, pushing her tired body up to walk around the group of teenagers, three older than her and one younger.

"We're not finished," Robin growls, stepping after her.

"For now we are," Apache growls, not turning around. "You toutch me and it'll be the last thing you ever do." of course she's bluffing, she couldn't fight him to save her life. She's just hoping she isn't screwing herself over royally for it.

As soon as she's out in the hall, Robin's protesting and screaching voice is cut off by the door. She bolts down the hall, taking the stares four at a time as she flies despite her mind telling her she could very well break her damn neck if she missteps, almost slipping as she rounds a corner, and finally screeches to a halt infront of Raven's door. She smacks her hand over the button on the wall and the door swishes open. She pads through quickly, her stomach churning.

She hits her knees, her head falling back with a shaky breath. Why her? Why not someone else? She's blaming Terra for all of this. That damn girl fucked a lot up.

Even in the comics she betrays the Titans. She's just hardwired to do so.

She doesnt know what to do.

She's startled at the portal of black that opens up a little ways away from her, sighing in relief when Raven steps out of it.

"I'm sorry," she instantly blurts.

"Nothing to be sorry for," Raven says simply. "You handled that well."

"Doesn't seem like it," Apache grumbles.

"He can get under everyone's skin. Walking away when you were as angry as you were was best," Raven pads over her carpet to take a seat on her bed, pulling her book to her.

"He asked you if I had told the truth?" Apache fishes.

Raven hums. "I told him you had. I know you know where their hideout is," Raven peers at her over her book, her expression unreadable. Apache's skin crawls. "Don't make a habbit of lying, I won't cover for you every time."

Apache nods, ashamed. "I only have an idea of where, not exactly. I don't lie unless I have a good reason," Apache knows it doesnt justify anything, but it makes her feel better about it that she tells Raven.

"I only covered for you because you've been truthful up until now." Raven looks back to her book.

"Hey, you let Jinx go, thats worse then knowing where the lair is," Apache points at Raven, cornering her words. Raven half heartedly glares at the red haired girl.

"If you have a plan to help I'm not going to prohibit it. The world could end in a few months anyway, whats the harm in letting you try if you have no ill intentions?"

"I feel like you're the only one thats gonna say that," Apache grumbles.

"Everything will get there," Raven turns the page in her book.

"Doesn't seem like it," She rolls her eyes.

They sit in silence, Apache falling on her back on the carpet.

Apache doesn't want to leave this room.

She doesnt want to deal with Robin.

She understands, she really does, but she isn't a steely person. She doesn't like conflict and being treated like a liar when she isn't one.

Why do all of the fanfictions make it seem so easy? The Titan's take the characters word and everything is peachy. Maybe theres a pairing, maybe there isnt, and if there is, sparks are instantly flying.

She glances at Raven at that. Yeah, she's attracted to the beautiful girl, but that doesn"t mean squat.

She remembers a fanfiction is which Jinx had a plan involving Raven. She'd get the girl's trust, and break the Titans apart before tearing them down. All she had to do was play Raven like a fiddle and coax her into a fake relationship. It had worked, until Jinx had fallen in love with the dark Titan. Its one of her favorites. And it seemed more simple than this.

She sighs quietly.

Why does everything have to be so complicated?

T.E.E.N.T.I.T.A.N.S.

The day goes by quietly, Raven even going as far as to bring Apache a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner as it was a fend for yourself kind of night. Aparently it was one of very few things Raven could cook on her own and not screw up.

Apache bites into the cheddar cheese filled sandwich greatfully. Its on the verge of being burnt, but is still edible. She chews quietly. She really isnt even that hungry, but it had been awhile since her last meal and its best if she just ate it.

Her teeth clamp together around the bread and cheese in shock when the alarm blares through the tower. She nearly chokes and coughs as she looks to Raven.

Raven looks at her questioningly, and Apache pushes herself up, grasping Raven's hand with her free one before they're being teleported into the common room. Her eyes blow wide when she sees the survalence feed on the Titans computer.

Slade.

Burning the mark of Scath into a demolished part of the city.

... ... ... ... ...

Sorry for the shortness guys. A 3000 word chapter is all I can offer up at the moment because I have to go review an episode before plowing on and I figured you guys would want an update now. So if you guys couldnt tell, we're getting a VERY long and action filled chapter next to make up for the shortness of this one. Hopefully it wont be such a long wait. We have a bunch of story left. I promise this isnt the beginning of the end ;)


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